The World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified two types of per- and polyfluoralkyl substances—perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)—as “carcinogenic to humans” and “possibly carcinogenic to humans,” and noted that the general population’s main route of exposure to these chemicals is through food and drinking water.
A recent study funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has provided strong evidence linking the ingestion of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which are present in food packaging and pervasive in drinking water, to thyroid cancer.
PFAS concentrations, which do not break down easily in the body, tend to increase rather than diminish over time. In light of these concerns and the prevalence of PFAS in consumer products like food packaging, many state and local governments, as well as public interest organizations, have begun enacting or promoting legislation that would regulate the implementation of PFAS in consumer products.
After finding that more than a third of water courses in England and Wales contain medium- to high-risk levels of per- and polyflouralkyl substances (PFAS), the Royal Society of Chemistry is calling upon the UK Government to enact stricter drinking water standards for the “forever chemicals.”
In response to the growing concerns around per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), Mitsubishi Gas Chemical has launched AGELESS, the first-ever PFAS-free oxygen absorber safe for food packaging.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the first dataset collected under the fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5), which is intended to provide new information that will improve EPA’s understanding of the frequency that 29 per- and polyfluoralkyl substances (PFAS) and lithium are found in U.S. drinking water systems, and at what levels.
A nationwide study conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has revealed that nearly half of all U.S. drinking water is contaminated by per- and polyflouralkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals.” Dietary exposure to PFAS is an issue of increasing concern due to the growing body of evidence regarding the chemicals’ harm to human health.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has provided and update on the agency’s activities to better understand per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the food supply, including recent testing results, progress on seafood-related work, and advances in testing methods.
Replacement per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) heralded as “safe” for use in food packaging may actually break down into toxic PFAS that leach into foods and the environment, suggests a study for the first time.
