The FDA is currently reviewing its approval of BPA and was due to deliver its verdict on 30 November but failed to do so.
BPA is a chemical used in food packaging, including in polycarbonate baby bottles and the epoxy lining of food cans. It belongs to a broad class of compounds called endocrine disruptors.
There has been growing concern in the US over the continued use of the packaging chemical, which has been linked to numerous health problems in an increasing number of studies.
Several US states have already banned the substance and a number of manufacturers and retail chains switching to BPA-free alternatives. Canada is expected to finalise a ban for its use in baby bottles by the end of the year.
Green Century, which manages environmentally responsible mutual funds, is urging the FDA to quickly regulate the use of the chemical.
"The FDA’s failure to produce a decision on BPA’s safety [today] signifies the agency’s continued inability to recognise the magnitude of existing sound independent scientific research on the chemical and spur a large-scale transition to BPA-free alternatives for food and beverage contact purposes,” claimed Emily Stone, an advocate for the group.
She said that the investment group believes there are potentially significant financial and other risks associated with using chemicals such as BPA, and she argues that innovative companies will move ahead urgently with BPA-free alternatives both to protect the health of their consumers and of their bottom lines.
Earlier this year, Green Century co-authored a report Seeking Safer Packaging with the As You Sow Foundation to evaluate food and beverage companies’ use of BPA and any alternatives, with most of the companies surveyed showing they had significant room for improvement in phasing out the use of the chemical.