To the Editor:

No child should be exposed to chemicals that cause cancer, developmental disabilities or reproductive problems. But our children’s health is threatened every day by dangerous chemicals such as BPA in food packaging.

As parents, we struggle to try to figure out what products are safe for our families. The truth is, there are too many chemicals and too little information for consumers.

Thankfully, Maine has phased out some of the worst toxic chemicals in certain products, such as BPA in water bottles and sippy cups. But we still have work to do.

For example, we now know that we could reduce our BPA levels by up to 60 percent if we get toxic BPA out of food packaging. That is why we signed on to the citizen-initiated rule to get BPA out of infant food, and we are thankful that this rule has been passed by the Legislature. Sadly, this rule does not protect our older children or adults.

In fact, under current law, there is an arbitrary exemption that prevents Maine from phasing out toxic chemicals in food packaging for children age 3 and older.

No child should be exposed to toxic chemicals at the dinner table, and parents should not have to be chemists to figure out what products are safe for our kids.

That is why we want to thank state Sen. Seth Goodall for his all his hard work and perseverance to better protect all Maine families from toxic chemicals in food packaging. His bill, “An Act to Further Protect Pregnant Women and Children from Toxic Chemicals,” would finally require billion-dollar companies to report their use of BPA and other toxic chemicals in their food packaging.

We ask other state legislators to please support LD 1181 to give parents the critical information we need to protect our families at the dinner table, and to take the next step in getting toxic chemicals out of our food.

Erika and Ryan McKenney
Topsham