Fluorosurfactants
25.3.2019
Question for written answer E-001484-19
to the Commission
Rule 130
Christel Schaldemose (S&D)
According to a new study[1] commissioned by the Nordic Council of Ministers, fluorosurfactants (per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances or PFAS) kill between 750 and 1 250 people in the Nordic countries each year. It is also estimated that health problems caused by PFAS cost the Nordic countries DKK 21-35 billion annually.
PFAS do not occur naturally, but they are found in many everyday products, including many materials that regularly come into contact with food, such as packaging and kitchen utensils.
1. What is the Commission going to do to remove PFAS from the everyday products that large numbers of people come into contact with? 2. Is the Commission going to bring in an immediate ban on PFAS? 3. Is the Commission aware that alternatives to PFAS are available[2] that are not harmful to health?