Both organic and conventionally grown cereal products — including baked goods, whole grains, pasta, flours and breakfast products — contained high levels of the “forever chemical” trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), according to a report released this month by Global 2000.
Global 2000 is an independent environmental organization in Austria and a member of Friends of the Earth. For the study, the group teamed up with Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Europe to test 48 Austrian cereal products for TFA, a type of polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) known commonly as “forever chemicals.”
They found TFA in all samples, including products grown on land never touched by pesticides — an indication of how easily the chemical spreads via water and wind.
Salomé Roynel, PFAS policy & campaign officer at PAN Europe, told The Defender, “TFA … doesn’t break down in the environment and accumulates in water, soil and food. That means our daily exposure is and will keep growing.”
