The Plastic Lining Inside Your Cans
The can is metal. What touches your food often isn't.
Metal cans need a lining so the food doesn't react with the metal. That lining is where the story gets interesting.
BPA and its cousins
Many can linings have used BPA, a chemical that can leach into food — more so with acidic foods like tomatoes and with heat. BPA can mimic estrogen in the body, which is why it's been pulled from baby bottles in many places.
"BPA-free" isn't a finish line
When brands dropped BPA, some switched to close relatives like BPS or BPF — less studied, not clearly safer. "BPA-free" can just mean "swapped for the chemical we know less about."
The move
For high-acid foods especially, glass jars or cartons sidestep the lining question entirely. When you do buy cans, brands that specify a non-BPA-based lining (not just "BPA-free") are the more transparent bet.
Ask kiiwii
- Is BPA still in cans?
- Are tomatoes worse in cans?
- Is "BPA-free" actually safer?
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