Ecosurety’s Packaging Sustainability Specialist, Alison Appleby, explains the harmful impacts of PFAS and the regulations coming into effect to phase out these substances.
When I arrived in the UK in 2024, I was shocked by how little attention PFAS were receiving. Australia had already begun phasing them out nationally in 2018, yet in the UK, there was still limited awareness and relatively little action.
I was surprised that many people in the packaging industry are still unfamiliar with these substances and the risks they pose to human and environmental health.
What struck me most was not only the lack of awareness, but also how widely PFAS are still used in packaging placed on the market today.
What are PFAS?
PFAS are ‘forever chemicals’ that persist in the environment for a long time. They are a group of chemicals typically used as coatings or treatments because they resist water, oil and heat.
They can be valuable for products like non-stick frying pans, waterproof clothing, or for fibre-based packaging, including take-away containers or pizza boxes, to retain their contents and reduce the likelihood of disintegration.
However, these same properties are problematic. They do not break down in sunlight, water, exposure to air or in temperature variability. They can enter and contaminate both aquatic and terrestrial environments, bioaccumulating in the food chain, which has negative impacts on both human and environmental health.
Studies on human health link high levels of PFAS exposure to a range of health impacts such as breast, testicular and kidney cancers and elevated cholesterol. PFAS has also been found in human blood, and studies show it can cross the human placenta during pregnancy.
Given the risks, it’s alarming that they are still being actively used by industry.
What is the UK doing about PFAS in packaging?
Defra’s policy paper on its PFAS Plan was published in February 2026. This plan outlines the UK government’s approach to tackling the challenges of PFAS in both packaging and products, including managing the prevalence and risks of PFAS. The plan is broken into three pillars:
- Understanding PFAS and its sources.
- Tackling pathways through which PFAS can enter and circulate in the environment.
- Reducing and managing ongoing exposure to harmful PFAS.
For packaging specifically, the plan indicates that further restrictions could be considered under the UK’s Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (UK REACH) regulation. This will have implications for packaging.
On 5 March, Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick raised the concern of PFAS in the House of Lords following publication of the PFAS Plan and sought greater restrictions on the use of the chemicals; so concern is definitely rising both in parliament and amongst the public.
PFAS are also included in the Recyclability Assessment Methodology (RAM) under packaging Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations in the UK.
Under the RAM, certain packaging materials containing intentionally added PFAS result in a ‘red’ RAM outcome. This ‘red’ outcome results in higher fees to producers under EPR and creates a strong incentive for businesses to remove them from their packaging.
Perhaps just as importantly, the inclusion of PFAS in the RAM has brought these chemicals to the attention of many producers who may not previously have been aware of them or their harmful impact.
The financial incentive to move away from the presence of ‘red’ triggers should hopefully see more action taken on PFAS sooner rather than later.
PFAS in packaging in Europe
Several countries across the globe are now banning or limiting the use of PFAS.
The European Union (EU) restrictions on PFAS under the Packaging & Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) will likely indirectly impact the UK market.
The PPWR indicates that from 12 August 2026, food packaging cannot be placed on the EU market if it contains PFAS in concentrations equal to or above the limits listed in Article 5 of the PPWR with respect to how they are assessed.
With this date fast approaching, businesses supplying packaging into the EU market should already be working to ensure that their packaging meets these requirements.
What does this mean for packaging producers?
For producers placing packaging on the UK or EU markets, PFAS can no longer be treated as a niche or distant regulatory issue. Producers should be:
- checking with their packaging suppliers/manufacturers if their packaging contains any intentionally added PFAS; and
- testing their packaging for the concentration of PFAS present.
Producers must be aware that many PFAS alternatives often have similarly harmful impacts on health and the environment.
It’s also important that producers aren’t switching from one hazardous material to another and simply shifting the problem. In some instances, businesses may need to rethink packaging formats altogether rather than simply swapping coatings or treatments.
With new regulations approaching in both the UK and EU, the time to begin investigating alternatives is now.
