Let’s go back to talking about PFAS, the “eternal” chemical substances that have recently been attracting more and more attention from authorities, scientists and public opinion. PAN Europe has published the results of a new study which highlights worrying levels of contamination in some everyday food products.
Specifically, high concentrations of trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a compound derived from PFAS, have been detected in cereal products. We are talking about breakfast cereals, bread, pasta, biscuits and other foods consumed every day in 16 European countries, including Italy, which are contaminated by this chemical substance which is toxic for reproduction and development.
What is TFA and why is it a concern
Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) is a chemical substance classified as toxic for reproduction under EU chemical law. It is a stable breakdown product of many fluorinated chemicals, including PFAS pesticides and fluorinated gases used in refrigeration.
The most worrying characteristic of TFA is its extreme persistence in the environment. Due to its water solubility, TFA accumulates in water and soil, where it is absorbed by plants. Once released into the environment, it does not degrade and continues to circulate indefinitely through the food chain, reaching our tables.
Recent scientific studies have highlighted the harmful effects of this substance on human health, with particular concern for reproduction, fetal development, thyroid, liver and immune functions. Studies also link TFA to reduced sperm quality.
The results of the European study
The investigation analyzed 66 cereal products purchased in supermarkets in 16 European countries. This is the first study of its kind at an EU level, as food authorities do not currently monitor TFA in foods.
TFA was detected in 81.8% of the samples analyzed, with an average concentration of 78.9 µg/kg and peak values up to 360 µg/kg. A particularly worrying fact emerges from the comparison with drinking water: the levels of TFA found in cereals are 107 times higher than the average concentration found in tap water.
The most contaminated product appears to be a breakfast cereal purchased in Ireland, with 360 µg/kg of TFA. This is followed by Belgian wholemeal bread (340 µg/kg), German wheat flour (310 µg/kg) and French baguette (210 µg/kg).
Products composed predominantly of wheat were significantly more contaminated than other cereals, with an average TFA concentration of 92.3 µg/kg, approximately 7.6 times higher than non-wheat products.
Scientists hypothesize that wheat has a particular efficiency in accumulating TFA from contaminated soil, thus explaining the high levels found in bread, pasta, biscuits and baked goods. This data is particularly relevant considering that wheat represents one of the basic foods of the Mediterranean and European diet.
The situation in Italy
In our country, a sample of pasta was analyzed, which recorded a TFA concentration of 26 µg/kg. Even if this value is lower than other European products, it still represents an exceeding of the predefined maximum residue limit.
It should be remembered that, at the moment, there are no specific limits for TFA in the EU. For this reason, the researchers compared the results with the default limit of 0.01 mg/kg (10 µg/kg), established for reproductive toxicants. All 54 contaminated samples in the study exceeded this safety level.
Daily exposure estimates are alarming, especially for children. Based on the consumption of cereal products alone, the daily exposure to TFA for children aged 3 to 9 years is estimated at 3.32 µg per kg of body weight per day, equal to 184.3% of the Acceptable Daily Intake proposed by PAN Europe. This means that European children almost double exceed the proposed safety threshold simply by consuming cereals, bread and pasta.
Pan Europe’s requests
All people are exposed to TFA through multiple routes, including food and drinking water. Our findings underline the urgent need to immediately ban PFAS pesticides to stop further contamination of the food chain,” said Salomé Roynel, Policy Officer at PAN Europe.
Angeliki Lysimachou, the organisation’s head of science and policy, adds:
Pesticides that emit TFA must be banned urgently. We cannot allow children and pregnant women to be exposed to chemicals that we know are harmful to reproductive health.
PAN Europe calls on the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to immediately establish a protective safety value for TFA, and urges the European Commission and Member States to ban PFAS pesticides and systematically monitor TFA in foods. A request that appears urgent considering that, at the moment, these contaminants escape ordinary food safety controls.
