Washington ? The Food and Drug Administration’s assurances that a controversial chemical is safe for use in food containers are badly flawed, an independent panel of scientific advisers concluded in a report released Tuesday.

The chemical, known as bisphenol A, is used to make plastic for food packaging, baby bottles and other consumer and medical goods. Environmental groups want to ban BPA in products for infants because of concerns that it can interfere with their development. But the FDA recently said there is no harm from the low doses of BPA that babies, children and most adults get by eating foods from containers made with the chemical.

Asked by the agency to review that conclusion, a panel of outside advisers delivered what amounts to a scientific rebuke.

“The margins of safety defined by FDA as ‘adequate’ are, in fact, inadequate,” said the report, a copy of which was provided to The Associated Press. The advisers found that the FDA had not considered all available, credible scientific evidence, and urged the agency to essentially go back to the lab.

The report came as a welcome surprise to environmentalists and their supporters in Congress. Citing some of the advisers’ ties to industry, critics had initially questioned the objectivity of the panel.

“Despite the concerns about their objectivity, (the panel) agreed with the many independent scientists that questioned FDA’s initial assessment on BPA,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., who chairs a committee that oversees the agency’s budget. The report “is reinforcing the position that the FDA should restart the BPA evaluation process.”