This new book on additives used in plastics for food contact, can be seen as a companion to the 1993 publication Spectra for the Identification of Monomers in Food Packaging [1, 2]. That earlier book presented information on monomeric substances listed in Directive 901128/EEC [3], which restricts the range of monomers and other starting substances that can be used for the production of plastics materials and articles intended for food contact applications. As a logical supplement to the collection of monomers and other starting substances, the preparation of a reference collection and a Handbook of analytical data of additives was undertaken with funding from The European Commission under the Standards Measurements and Testing programme. We then give a collection of spectra for the identification of 100 of the most important additives used in plastics packaging and coatings. Infra-red (FT-IR) and mass spectra (MS) are presented, as in the monomers book, but we have extended the scope to include proton nuclear magnetic resonance eH-NMR) spectra and gas-chromatographic (GC) data. Legal Framework The Commission of the European Communities provides in Synoptic Document N. 7 [4] a provisional list of additives used for the production of food contact plastics. This Synoptic Document anticipates a Directive on additives for food contact plastics. One hundred of the most important additives were selected from this provisional list after extensive consultation with researchers in the field and with representatives from European industry (Food Contact Additives Panel (FCA) sector group of the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC).
