Migration of plasticizer from poly(vinyl chloride) milk tubing

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Abstract
Milk samples were collected from a dairy in Norway at various stages of the milking process in order to assess the extent of migration of di(2‐ethyl hexyl)phthalate (DEHP) from plasticized tubing used in commercial milking equipment. In control milk samples obtained by hand milking, DEHP contamination was below 5 μg/kg, whilst for machine milking, concentrations in the milking chamber for each individual cow averaged 30 μg/kg and rose to 50 μg/kg in the central collecting tank. Retail pasturized skimmed milk samples from Norway were found to contain 20 μg/kg DEHP, and two retail cream samples contained 1200 and 1400 μg/kg of DEHP, reflecting the association of plasticizer with the fat phase. Retail whole milks from the UK contained 35 μg/kg of DEHP. This contamination is believed to originate from environmental sources as DEHP plasticizer was not used in the milking equipment.