PFAS chemicals are commonly found in sandwich and dessert wrappers, as well as compostable paper bowls and plates and fast-food boxes. | Stephen Brashear/Getty Images agriculture Exclusive: Maker of 'forever chemicals' cuts food packaging products

Chemical giant and Teflon maker Chemours has quietly stopped making some non-stick coatings used in disposable food packaging amid public debate about their health effects, the company told POLITICO.

The DuPont spinoff said it no longer manufactures three products containing PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, in the U.S. or globally that were applied to paper food packaging to resist oil and grease. The company told POLITICO it has also asked the Food and Drug Administration to voluntarily withdraw approval of the products.


Chemours did not comment on why it decided to stop making the three PFAS-based products, only stating that its business is more focused on other markets like consumer electronics, energy storage and automotives. Manufacturers of PFAS maintain the chemicals are not a public health risk, and FDA previously backed them up, signing off on the safety of dozens of food-packaging uses of the chemicals. However, the agency said this summer it had launched a review because new evidence suggests they may be harmful.

“Since our inception as a company in 2015, food packaging has never been a focus for Chemours,” the company said in a statement, adding that it has no intention of developing any new PFAS-based products for food packaging. “We do not believe our withdrawals … will have any impact on the food packaging marketplace — we have not meaningfully participated in this marketplace for some time.”

Chemours’ move comes as the Trump administration faces pressure from states and public health advocates to reduce Americans’ exposure to PFAS, a class of nearly 5,000 chemicals that since the 1940s have been used in everything from cookware and fabric to carpeting and firefighting foam. They are commonly found in sandwich and dessert wrappers, as well as compostable paper bowls and plates and fast-food boxes. Chains like Chipotle and Sweetgreen use packaging containing PFAS, The New Food Economy reported earlier this week.

Some PFAS are known to cause health problems in part because they are extremely long-lasting and accumulate over time in the human body and the environment. As FDA reviews the chemicals, some states are taking the lead in efforts to ban PFAS in everyday products, including food packaging, to protect water quality and public health. Manufacturers including Chemours, DuPont and 3M are also facing a litany of lawsuits over PFAS contamination.

Chemical companies years ago stopped making two of the most well-studied PFAS, known as PFOS and PFOA, because of links to kidney and testicular cancer, hypertension and developmental and reproductive issues. They were removed from food packaging in 2011 under an agreement between FDA and major manufacturers like 3M, BASF and DuPont.

But those two chemicals have been replaced by newer PFAS variations that chemical companies say are significantly safer. A number of these have been approved by FDA for use in food packaging over the past two decades.

The agency evaluates the safety of non-stick coatings and other food-packaging products through an obscure notification system that relies on data submitted by chemical manufacturers, such as what the coatings are made from, their toxicity and how much of a given chemical could migrate into food. FDA said it limits these uses for food packaging to ensure consumer safety.

But in June the agency announced it was reviewing the approvals because recent studies suggested newer PFAS on the market may pose a risk to human health. FDA is working with other federal agencies to determine next steps.

It is unclear whether Chemours’ decision to discontinue three PFAS-based substances was related to the FDA review. The company did not comment on what portion of its business has been dedicated to food-packaging chemicals.

Chemours’ latest financial report states that it earned $2.9 billion last year from its line of “fluoroproducts.” The products include Teflon, repellents for leather and floor tile, foam used to extinguish fires, refrigerants and industrial cleaners, as well as a “foam blowing agent” for food packaging, according to the company’s website.

Chemours makes at least six other coatings that come into contact with food, primarily through use in food processing equipment, that appear to contain PFAS, according to a review of an FDA database. The company did not return a request for comment on whether it has stopped, or plans to stop, manufacturing those products.

There are no estimates of how much of the food-packaging supply is made with PFAS-based chemicals, said Lynn Dyer, president of the Foodservice Packaging Institute, a trade association. She said consumers should not be concerned about the chemicals because FDA’s review process is rigorous. The industry is working on finding alternatives to PFAS-based products that perform well and could be marketed at a competitive price, she added.

Erika Schreder, science director at Toxic-Free Future, an advocacy and research group that lobbies policymakers to strengthen chemical protections, said Chemours’ decision reflects the reality that the chemicals are “dangerous and unnecessary.”

“When PFAS is used in food packaging, we end up with these persistent chemicals in our food and in our bodies, and when we’re done eating, the packaging ends up contaminating compost and water,” Schreder told POLITICO.

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