Some lawmakers in New York are pushing to ban cookware that contains polytetrafluoroethylene, more widely recognized as Teflon. This is part of Senate Bill S1767, which aims to prohibit the production, sale, and usage of such items.
Teflon is categorized under PFAS, known colloquially as “forever chemicals” because they can linger in the environment for hundreds or even thousands of years without breaking down.
The bill specifically targets Teflon utensils, which include pots, frying pans, grills, and various cooking tools.
Recently, the Make America Healthy Committee, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr., shared a report examining chronic health issues, particularly those affecting children. The report asserts that PFAS exposure can significantly harm child health.
According to the report, “high levels of specific types of PFAS are linked to a range of health concerns, such as immunosuppression and alterations in cholesterol levels among children.” The FDA has indicated that even minuscule amounts of PFAS can seep into food through packaging or cooking supplies.
While some PFAS are approved for use in cooking tools and food packaging, the FDA acknowledged that they are striving to understand better the implications of these substances in food, as certain types of PFAS are connected to serious health risks.
Steve Burns from the Cookware Sustainability Alliance noted that his organization is in discussions with New York State Senators. He mentioned that the same materials used for non-stick coatings have been utilized safely in pacemaker coatings for over six decades.
Burns underlined that these coatings have been thoroughly studied and deemed a stable, non-toxic material that doesn’t dissolve in water. He urged New York legislators to consider the science behind non-stick cookware, similar to what is being done in other states.
Research from Australia previously indicated that even a tiny crack in a Teflon-coated surface can release around 9,100 plastic particles. Dr. Cheng Fang from Newcastle University, one of the authors of the study, emphasized that while PFAS are indeed a major concern, much remains unknown about these pollutants and the implications of Teflon microparticles in our food.
