The American Chemistry Council is mounting a campaign to stop a California bill that would ban bisphenol A. The effort is attracting some attention this weekend, including this critical news story in the Orange County Register.

Mailers and ads appearing in newspapers across the state depict an empty grocery cart in the desert and warn that if BPA is banned, canned food and beverages might be vulnerable to spoilage or contamination. Food products, the ads say, could disappear from grocery store shelves even though "rigorous scientific reviews" conclude the products are safe.

"Maybe that's why no other state in the country bans BPA," the ads say.

But experts say that pitch is misleading in several respects.

The bill wouldn't regulate the majority of food found on grocery store shelves. It only restricts BPA in products for kids ages 3 and younger, such as formula cans, sippy cups, baby bottles and glass jars of baby food, said Tracy Fairchild, a spokeswoman for the bill's sponsor Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco.

"It's designed to deceive consumers" Fairchild said. "This is toxic to the political process. It's fine to oppose, but you have to tell the truth."

ACC's Steve Hentges defends the ads in the story, saying: "We do believe that the bill could potentially affect a wide range of products... and it could extend quite a bit beyond that to containers and serving dishes -- anything used to feed a child."

For a look at the ACC ads, check out this link from the Cheese Slave blog, which includes copies of the campaign.