Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a family of human-made chemicals that are found in a wide range of products used by consumers and industry. There are nearly 5,000 different types of PFAS, some of which have been more widely used and studied than others. Many PFAS are resistant to grease, oil, water, and heat. For this reason, beginning in the 1940’s, PFAS have been used in a variety of applications including in stain- and water-resistant fabrics and carpeting, cleaning products, paints, and fire-fighting foams. Certain PFAS are also authorized by the FDA for limited use in cookware, food packaging, and food processing equipment.

The widespread use of PFAS and their ability to remain intact in the environment means that over time PFAS levels from past and current uses can result in increasing levels of environmental contamination. Accumulation of certain PFAS has also been shown through blood tests to occur in humans and animals. While the science surrounding potential health effects of this bioaccumulation of certain PFAS is developing, evidence suggests it may cause serious health conditions.

To advance knowledge of potential exposure to PFAS from food, the FDA conducts limited testing of foods from the general food supply. The FDA also conducts limited testing of food grown or processed in areas with environmental contamination to detect and evaluate potential contamination of human and animal food.

In addition, as part of the FDA’s role in authorizing substances for use in food contact applications, we monitor developments in scientific data on authorized substances, including those containing PFAS. As with all authorized food contact substances, when the FDA identifies health concerns associated with the food contact use of specific substances containing PFAS, we take action to ensure that these substances are no longer used in food contact applications.

As the science on PFAS advances, the FDA will continue working with other Department of Health and Human Services agencies including the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as other federal agencies, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Department of Defense, in addition to our state and local partners, to identify routes of PFAS exposure, understand associated health risks, and reduce the public’s exposure to those health risks.

For more information and recent announcements, please visit:

Authorized Uses of PFAS in Food Contact Applications

To ensure that food contact substances used in packaging, cookware, and food processing equipment are safe for their intended use, the FDA conducts a rigorous review of scientific data prior to their authorization. Prior to 2000, the FDA authorized the use of food contact substances through the food additive petition process, which resulted in a regulation establishing safe conditions of use in Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Since 2000, the FDA authorizes the use of food contact substances through the Food Contact Notification (FCN) program. The Inventory of Effective Food Contact Substance (FCS) Notifications is a publicly available database of all uses of food contact substances authorized through the FCN program.

Certain PFAS are currently authorized for use in specific applications related to their non-stick and grease, oil, and water-resistant properties. Whether these PFAS migrate to food depends on the molecular structure of the PFAS and the conditions of use. For example, the PFAS used in non-stick coatings on cookware and sealing gaskets for food processing equipment do not migrate to food. However, PFAS used to make oil- and water-resistant coatings on paper food packaging have the potential to migrate to food. The specific authorized uses for PFAS in food packaging take into consideration this potential for migration and these authorized uses are limited to ensure safe levels of exposure.

The FDA reviews updated scientific information on food contact substances as it becomes available. The agency can revoke food contact authorizations when scientific data demonstrate that the authorized uses of a food contact substance are no longer safe. In addition, the FDA can also work with industry to remove food contact substances from the market through voluntary agreements. For example, the FDA has reached voluntary agreements with manufacturers to phase out their sales of certain PFAS authorized for use in food contact applications.

Market Phase-Out of Certain Short-Chain PFAS

There are 15 Food Contact Notifications (FCNs) held by four manufacturers for 11 compounds that may contain a short-chain PFAS known as 6:2 fluorotelomer alcohol (6:2 FTOH). In the spring of 2020, the FDA published findings from a post-market scientific review and analysis of data from rodent studies. The data raise questions about the potential human health risks from dietary exposure resulting from authorized food contact applications for short-chain PFAS that contain 6:2 FTOH. Because the data showed biopersistence of 6:2 FTOH in rodents and a higher level of toxicity compared to other types of short-chain PFAS, along with a lack of long-term data on the safety of these substances, the FDA contacted the manufacturers to discuss data needs with respect to the potential human health risks from these authorized food contact uses.

In July 2020, three manufacturers voluntarily agreed to a 3-year phase-out of their sales of these compounds for use in food contact applications in the United States, beginning in January 2021. After the 3-year period, it is anticipated that it may take up to 18 months to exhaust existing stocks of products containing these food contact substances from the market. The fourth manufacturer informed the FDA in 2019 that it had already stopped sales of its food contact substances that may contain 6:2 FTOH for food contact use in the U.S. market.

To read the commitment letters from industry, please visit:

To read the FDA’s letters to industry acknowledging receipt of industry commitment letters, please visit:

Short-chain PFAS have 7 or less carbons (typically 6 carbons) and replaced long-chain PFAS as grease-proofing agents used in food contact paper and paperboard applications after the long-chain PFAS stopped being used due to safety concerns in 2011. Manufacturers of short-chain grease-proofing agents obtained authorization for the use of these substances in food contact paper packaging applications through the FDA’s Food Contact Notification (FCN) process.

At the time the FCNs for short-chain PFAS became effective, the scientific data available to FDA showed they were a safe alternative to the long-chain PFAS and did not indicate any potential for biopersistence. Subsequent studies on short-chain PFAS continued to be conducted after the FCNs became effective, and the FDA has continued its analysis of these data as they became available. In 2020, FDA researchers published two papers pertaining to additional available information on short-chain PFAS.

The first paper described the biopersistence of 6:2 FTOH in rodents. The second paper reviewed the available data in rodents, comparing the toxicity and biopersistence of 6:2 FTOH and another SC-PFAS, perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA). PFHxA has been proposed in the scientific literature as a representative substance when assessing toxicity for some short-chain PFAS. However, many SC-PFAS contain 6:2 FTOH either as a constituent or an impurity or may be metabolized or converted to 6:2 FTOH. FDA’s review found that 6:2 FTOH, in rodents, biopersists whereas PFHxA does not, and that 6:2 FTOH is more toxic than PFHxA. As a result, the FDA concluded that 6:2 FTOH is a more representative substance in evaluating the safety of certain short-chain PFAS that contain 6:2 FTOH.

For recent scientific articles from FDA researchers, please visit:

Long-Chain PFAS

In 2011, the FDA obtained voluntary agreements with the manufacturers of certain long-chain PFAS compounds authorized under food contact notifications to remove those substances from food contact applications. In 2016, the FDA revoked the regulations that authorized the remaining uses of these long-chain PFAS in food packaging.

For more information about these FDA actions, please visit:

Assessing PFAS in Food from Environmental Contamination through Sampling

PFAS can enter the food chain through environmental contamination, such as when crops are grown in contaminated soil or water is used from a contaminated source. Typically, contaminated groundwater and soil is limited to a specific geographic area, for example, near an industrial facility where PFAS were produced or used to manufacture other products, or an oil refinery, airfield or other location at which PFAS-containing products were used for firefighting.

Measuring PFAS concentrations in food, estimating dietary exposure, and determining the associated health effects is an emerging area of science. FDA scientists are at the forefront of developing new and more sensitive testing methods to measure low levels of PFAS in foods. In October 2019, the FDA made available the first single-lab validated method for testing for certain specific PFAS in a diverse group of foods. While the FDA continues to lead national efforts to estimate overall dietary exposure to PFAS, this is an important step in furthering collaboration between the FDA and states in assessing the safety of human and animal food from specific areas potentially affected by environmental contamination.

For the scientific method, please visit:

Determination of 16 Per and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Food using Liquid Chromatography-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) (Version 2019).

It is important to note that PFAS contamination in the environment (air, water, and soil) where food is grown does not necessarily mean the food itself will contain detectable PFAS. This is because the amount of PFAS taken up by foods depends on many factors, including the specific type of PFAS and characteristics of the food. Limited FDA testing for certain PFAS chemicals has found that most foods have no or very low levels of PFAS.

When there is evidence of PFAS in food, the FDA conducts a safety assessment using the best available current science to evaluate whether the levels present a possible human health concern. Throughout this process, the FDA works closely with our federal partners as well as with state and local officials to assess each situation and take appropriate next steps.

The FDA safety assessment method used for chemical contaminants considers how much people eat of the specific food and the toxicity of the specific contaminant(s) to characterize the human health concern. When analyzing food that may contain PFAS because of environmental contamination, the FDA has used the Environmental Protection Agency’s reference doses (RfD) for perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), of 0.02 μg/kg bw/day as an appropriate toxicity reference value. This focus on PFOA and PFOS is because they are the two types of PFAS that have been produced in the largest quantities in the U.S. and are among the most studied.

Analytical Results of Testing Foods Grown or Produced in Specific Geographic Areas Contaminated with PFAS

Dairy, 2018-2019: Samples were collected from two dairy farms (Farm A & Farm B) with PFAS contamination of groundwater. Based on the best available current science, the FDA has no indication that the levels of PFAS found in the limited sampling of milk from Farm B and cheese from Farm A present a human health concern. Milk samples from Farm A had levels of PFAS that were determined to be a potential human health concern and all milk from that farm was discarded and did not enter the food supply.
- Analytical Results for PFAS in 2018-2019 Dairy Sampling (Parts Per Trillion)
Produce, 2018: Produce samples were analyzed from an area with PFAS environmental contamination, in addition to 1 sample purchased outside of the area as a control. Sixteen of the 20 samples had detectable levels of PFAS. This sample size is limited and cannot be used to draw definitive conclusions. Based on the best available current science, the FDA has no indication that these substances, at the levels found in the limited sampling, present a human health concern.
- Analytical Results for PFAS in 2018 Produce Sampling (Parts Per Trillion)
Cranberries, 2016: Cranberry samples analyzed from a bog containing water with PFAS contamination. None of the 42 cranberry samples had detectable levels of PFAS. This sample size is limited and cannot be used to draw definitive conclusions.
- Investigation into perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in a cranberry bog: method development and sampling results. Susan Genualdi, Nahyun Jeong, Lowri deJager and Timothy Begley. FOOD ADDITIVES & CONTAMINANTS: PART A, 2017, VOL. 34, NO. 12, 2181–2189.

Analytical Results of Testing Foods for PFAS in the General Food Supply

Announcements and Additional Resources

FDA Announcements (2019)

Additional Information on PFAS from Other Federal Government Agencies

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) and Your Health
The United States Environmental Protection Agency: Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS)