A class of harmful substances known as “forever chemicals,” or PFAS, will soon be banned in France in everything from cosmetics to clothing, after a definitive vote by French members of Parliament.
However, cookware has been excluded from the law, following an intense lobbying push last year from the manufacturers of nonstick frying pans and saucepans — including the SEB group, which owns cookware company Tefal.
From Jan. 1 2026, the text bans the manufacture, import, export and marketing of products containing PFAS, in clothing, footwear, cosmetics and ski wax. The ban will be extended to all textile products from 2030, unless “necessary for essential uses.”
The text also includes a “polluter pays” stipulation whereby companies would have to pay €100 for every 100 grams of PFAS released. “This will represent around ten million euros per year,” claims the Green member of Parliament behind the law, Nicolas Thierry.
