USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA-FSIS) sampled and tested meat, chicken, and Siluriformes fish (catfish) for 16 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), detecting “forever chemicals” in less than 0.2–0.3 percent of all sample types except wild-caught catfish, of which nearly half contained at least one PFAS.
In this episode of Food Safety Matters, we speak to industry attorney Alfredo Fernández about what the new Toxic Substances Control Act and emerging state legislation mean for food manufacturers, importers, and businesses regarding compliance with U.S. requirements for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in food contact materials and packaging.
Researchers funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and led by the University at Buffalo have created a filtration system that can effectively remove 90 and 80 percent of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from groundwater and sewage, respectively. It is more effective and cost- and resource-efficient than activated carbon filtration.
FDA carried out a sampling and testing assignment of bottled waters for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in 2023–2024. Although PFAS were detected in ten samples, no bottled waters were found to have levels of “forever chemicals” exceeding EPA maximum limits for PFAS in drinking water.
A study demonstrated the toxic effects of exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in worms—but not all PFAS were found to be equally toxic, and not all worms experienced the same harms. Identifying which genes cause PFAS susceptibility in both worms and humans could speed up PFAS testing and regulation.
In a first-of-its-kind study analyzing large population-level datasets, researchers from the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine estimated that communities exposed to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) -contaminated drinking water experience up to 33 percent higher incidence of certain cancers.
“NSF Certification Guideline 537: PFAS-Free Products for Nonfood Compounds and Food Equipment Materials” (NSF 537) is a new certification for suppliers of food equipment materials, nonfood compounds, and chemicals to distinguish their products as free of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS).
The Food Packaging Forum’s open access Database on Migrating and Extractable Food Contact Chemicals (FCCmigex) has been updated to include the most recent science on thousands of food contact chemicals to which humans are exposed. FCCmigex supports scientific and regulatory efforts to improve food contact material safety.
A recent study has revealed that nearly 100 million people in the U.S. are exposed to unregulated chemicals in their drinking water—including solvents, refrigerants, and PFAS—with Hispanic populations most disproportionately affected.
A survey of Swedish toddlers conducted by the Swedish Food Agency as part of the Riksmaten Young Children dietary study has found high levels of some toxic substances—such as PFAS, BPA, and lead—in the children’s bodies.
