Beware: 'Forever Chemicals' Found in Food Packaging

A new study has found food packaging and equipment can contain up to 68 potentially harmful "forever chemicals" that regulators may not even know exist. The findings were published March 19 in Environmental Science & Technology.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of synthetic chemicals used to make products like nonstick cookware and waterproof clothing. The bonds between carbon and fluorine atoms in PFAS are very strong, and they can take hundreds or even thousands of years to break down.

Some PFAS have been linked to harmful health effects, including cancer, reproductive and immune problems.

"There are thousands of these chemicals, and we wanted to get an initial overview of the use of PFAS in food packaging," said Birgit Geueke of the Swiss Food Packaging Forum. 食品包装中潜在的有害化学物质

科学家们研究了 1312 项关于与食品接触的化学物质的研究，发现：

• 68 种 PFAS（全氟和多氟烷基物质）存在于食品包装和炊具中。
• 其中 61 种 PFAS 以前未被识别，因此不在监管清单中。
• 39 种 PFAS 进行了毒性测试，一种名为全氟辛酸的物质被归类为可能的致癌物。

专家说：“制造商有责任尽量减少 PFAS 的使用。”监管机构正在采取行动，例如欧盟提议禁止大多数 PFAS，美国食品和药品管理局禁止在食品包装中使用某些含 PFAS 的防油材料。