Wegmans Food Markets has begun offering refunds on SIGG bottles. SIGG announced earlier in September that liners in bottles made prior to August 2008, contain trace amounts of bisphenol A, or BPA, a chemical some research has linked to developmental problems in children.
Wegmans is offering refunds or replacements to those with Shopper's Club cards who bought the bottles on or before that date, as well as those who purchased them after that time but remain concerned about safety. Wegmans reported Friday that letters offering the refunds had been sent to thousands of customers on Sept. 11.
SIGG, which contends that all its bottles now have liners free of the suspect chemical, is offering refunds as well. The products are widely sold locally, including Dick's Sporting Goods, Target and Eastern Mountain Sports. Patagonia ended its business relationships with SIGG, saying it had been misled about the use of the chemical in SIGG products.
There has been no mandatory or voluntary recall of the product, as the federal Food and Drug Administration determined in October 2008 that the amount of the chemical in the bottles posed no risk to humans. But the agency has agreed to reopen the review when concerns were raised that the initial review contained data from research funded by the chemical industry.
