“Message from the bottle” – new analyses show alarming increase in the perpetuation chemical TFA in European
No reason to panic – but a call for urgent action!
Almost a year ago, the Mouvement Ecologique published data on the contamination of water (ground and surface water, but also drinking water) with the so-called perennial chemical TFA (1). Data on the contamination of mineral water was then presented at the end of the year. This was part of a joint campaign with European partners of the “Pesticide Action Network Europe” (PAN Europe), of which the Mouvement Ecologique is a member.
New data on the contamination of wine is now available and will be published this Wednesday. They show the current exposure of wine to TFA and also impressively illustrate the increase in the chemical over the last few decades.
All analyses show: Wine is contaminated with TFA and pesticides and the contamination is steadily increasing. Wine is only representative of agricultural products in general. Urgent action is required.
Below the page you will find general information on the PFAS and TFA issue ↓
This Wednesday, the Pesticide Action Network (PAN Europe) the new report “Message from the Bottle – The Rapid Rise of TFA Contamination Across the EU“, which presents data on the contamination of wine from 10 countries by the perennial chemical TFA and pesticides. The Mouvement Ecologique, as a member of this alliance, participated in the project and contributed 3 Luxembourg wine samples.
More than 30 PFAS active substances are currently authorised in plant protection products for European agriculture. These products are deliberately applied to fields, contribute to PFAS contamination of food, soil and water and break down into TFA as a common degradation product.
In total, wines from Austria, Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg and Spain were tested. (2)
The random analyses, which need to be deepened by detailed scientific investigations, reveal interesting and worrying facts:
1. All wines in the study are contaminated with the perpetuity chemical TFA – including the Luxembourg wines
As part of the campaign, 10 older wines (individual vintages between 1974 and 2015) and 39 young wines (vintages 2021-2024) from 10 European countries were analysed, including 3 Luxembourg wines from the 2023 vintage.
TFA was detected in all young wines from 10 European countries – with concentrations of up to 330 micrograms per litre (µg/l) and an average value of 122 µg/l. This value is 100 times higher than the average TFA content previously measured in surface and drinking water.
The contamination of the Luxembourg wine samples – Pinot gris, rosé and Pinot noir – was positively in the lower mid-range (50 µg/l) (Fig. 1)
Fig. 1: TFA concentrations (µg/l) in the 39 wine samples from 10 European countries. Wines from conventional cultivation are shown with circles, those from organic cultivation as triangles. Red stands for red wine, yellow for white wine and pink for rosé. Source: PAN Europe & Global 2000.
There is currently no value for the permissible contamination of wine or food in the EU or in individual member states. However, there are reference values for water. It should be noted that s the World Health Organisation (WHO) is currently re-evaluating and reviewing TFA and its reference values due to suspected adverse health effects. In anticipation of the WHO’s findings, the Luxembourg Health Directorate (DISA) has carried out an assessment of TFA and presented a reference value which, according to current knowledge, has been set at 12,000 ng/l or 12 µg/l for drinking water. Luxembourg wines are therefore five times higher than this value.
Even though people drink far more water than wine, the figures show the following: TFA contamination is omnipresent and should not be underestimated. It must be assumed that numerous foods are generally contaminated with TFA. The extent of the health risks of this contamination for the human body has not yet been sufficiently investigated. However, the few studies that do exist indicate a clear hazard. The toxicity of PFAS, the “parent substance”, has also been sufficiently proven. There are therefore numerous arguments in favour of urgent and consistent action. In addition, it must be borne in mind that humans are likely to repeatedly ingest doses of TFA via the various foodstuffs. The decisive factor is therefore no longer “only” the maximum permissible exposure of a foodstuff, but the cumulative effect of the various TFA sources must be taken into account.
2. Exposure to the eternity chemical TFA has increased significantly over the years!
No traces of TFA were detected in wines from vintages prior to 1988. Since 2010, a strong, exponential increase in contamination has been observed in the samples measured (Fig. 2), to which the use of PFAS pesticides has contributed.
Fig. 2: Temporal increase in TFA concentration (µg/l) in wine. The data points from 1974 to 2015 represent individual samples, while the data point around 2023 represents the arithmetic mean of the 39 European wines from the 2021-2023 vintages.
The situation can be summarised as follows: No contamination before 1988 – strong increase since 2010 with values that are many times higher today (3).
It can be assumed that the pollution comes from pesticides on the one hand, but also from fluorinated gases, so-called “F-gases”, from the air. (F-gases are mainly used in coolants).
3. Frequent and sometimes high pesticide residues – especially in Luxembourg wine
The wine samples were analysed in parallel for pesticide residues. The result is alarming: individual wines are contaminated with up to 8 pesticides and pesticide metabolites, 94% of conventionally produced wines are contaminated. While there is still a need for scientific research into the effects of TFAs on human health, the effects of pesticides have already been researched more thoroughly and their considerable negative consequences are known.
A total of 18 pesticides were detected in all European samples, including two PFAS fungicides, fluopyram and fluopicolide.
It is noteworthy that four out of five organic wines analysed were free of detectable pesticide residues, but also contained varying levels of TFA (40-130 µg/l). The sample size is too small to make definitive statements, but the findings seem to indicate the widespread environmental pollution of rainwater, groundwater and agricultural soils by TFA.
Wines in the upper range of the TFA concentration (average: 176 µg/l) showed an average pesticide contamination twice as high as those in the lower range (average: 58 µg/l ). This observation indicates a possible correlation between pesticide use and TFA contamination.
The rather high residues of the fungicide Folpet in the Luxembourg wines are worrying. The Pinot Noir and Gris were at the top of the list with around 300 µg/l, ahead of other European wines which, however, had other fungicide residues. Residues of up to 6 different pesticides were detected in the Pinot Noir, and up to three different ones in the other two samples ( average three at EU level).
5. TFA in pesticides violates EU law – authorisations must be revoked
The regular exceeding of legal limits by TFA-releasing pesticides is not only an environmental and health risk, but also a clear violation of European law. The EU Plant Protection Products Regulation (1107/2009) obliges the Member States to protect drinking water resources from harmful substances. TFA – a metabolite (degradation substance) that is classified as toxic to reproduction – may not actually exceed the value of 0.1 µg/l in groundwater. Unfortunately, this happens regularly.
This means that the requirements of the EU Plant Protection Products Regulation and the EU Groundwater Directive are clearly no longer met. According to EU law, all authorisations for affected products must therefore be revoked immediately. Anything else would not only be negligent, but also illegal (4).
6. conclusions
TFA concentrations are rising continuously: in water, in drinking water, in wine – and probably in agricultural products in general, as these analyses of European wines show. As wine is a long-lasting product and analyses of the contamination of wines from past years are still possible today, it can impressively illustrate the increase in TFA as a witness to different years.
Today’s high levels of pollution show that the “eternal chemical” TFA is accumulating in the environment and that pollution will continue to rise (if no adequate countermeasures are taken).
In all likelihood, we absorb far more TFA through the various sources of water and food than previously thought.
This means that pollution from different sources accumulates. This fact must also be taken into account when setting limit values.
In recent years, the health hazards of TFAs have been criminally neglected to be investigated in depth. However, the toxicity of many of the “precursor substances” (i.e. PFAS, the perpetuating chemicals) has been sufficiently proven and everything indicates that the risk posed by TFAs is also high.
We are only at the beginning of uncovering the full extent of exposure to perpetuating chemicals.
Urgent and consistent action is therefore required: On the one hand, because further scientific analyses will in all likelihood show that the current limits are being exceeded – and on the other hand, because the harmful chemical is constantly accumulating!
The Mouvement Ecologique therefore renews its urgent appeal to the government, including
- An immediate ban on PFAS pesticides and F-gases at EU level, and above all support the EU Commission’s proposal to ban the pesticide flutolanil in mid-May (5);
- In general, to demand stricter requirements within the framework of REACH legislation and a reform of agricultural policy
- Use all available means at Luxembourg level to reduce the use of pesticides in general: through bans, support for alternative cultivation methods and above all organic farming methods – also through a reorientation of Luxembourg’s agricultural policy;
- To promote the very specific promotion of organic farming, for example through the use of organic food in public canteens
- Establish a comprehensive monitoring and surveillance programme for TFA contamination of food and the environment and publish the data proactively;
- Opt for a precautionary regulatory approach that takes into account the significant gaps in toxicological data and the potential risks to public health, including that of children.
- Pending in-depth scientific analyses on the toxicology of TFA, apply the precautionary principle;
- Reduce F-gases as far as possible in Luxembourg and prescribe alternatives – Carry out an offensive campaign to replace F-gases and ensure controls.
Background
(1) TFA is the non-degradable end product of the degradation of other PFAS compounds, such as those used in cooling technologies or in pesticides. In terms of groundwater pollution, PFAS pesticides from agriculture are the main culprits. According to a study by the German Federal Environment Agency (UBA), they account for a potential annual share of 76%, followed by TFA emissions from rain (mainly from fluorinated gases in cooling systems) with 17% and wastewater treatment plants and manure with 3% each.
The substance is also toxic to reproduction, meaning that it can impair healthy development in the early stages of life. TFA is ubiquitous in water resources and occurs in concentrations several orders of magnitude higher than other PFAS. Recent scientific warnings indicate that TFA poses a serious threat to planetary boundaries, as TFA released today will permanently impact future generations.
Toxicologically, TFA was long considered largely harmless – especially from the point of view of PFAS manufacturers. However, a study commissioned by TFA manufacturers in 2021 as part of the REACH chemicals regulation showed severe malformations in rabbit foetuses. Since then, it has been suspected that TFA could pose a risk to human reproductive health.
Leading environmental scientists have recently highlighted the dramatic increase in TFA contamination in the water cycle and biosphere, calling it a threat to planetary boundaries.
(2) Samples were provided by the following organisations: Austria (GLOBAL 2000), Belgium (Nature & Progrès and Bond Beter Leefmilieu), Croatia (Earth Trek), France (Générations Futures), Germany (PAN Germany), Greece (Ecocity), Hungary (MTVSZ/Friends of the Earth Hungary), Luxembourg (Mouvement Ecologique), Spain (Ecologistas en Acción) and Sweden (Naturskyddsföreningen).
(3) Michael Müller, Professor of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Freiburg, describes the strong accumulation of TFA in plant-based foods as “a warning signal that requires decisive action“. Independently of today’s PAN study, he has observed similar trends in his own analyses of old and new wines. “Our results clearly show the urgency of taking immediate action to prevent further TFA emissions,” he said. “In newer wines harvested after 2020, we observed a wide range of TFA levels, from 20 to 330 µg/litre. The lowest levels were found in organically produced wines, from grapes grown in fields that have been free of chemical inputs for decades. This indicates that PFAS pesticides contribute directly or indirectly to the high TFA levels in cultivated plants.”
The strong increase in TFA levels is also confirmed by a comparison with official EU data from the EU reference laboratory CVUA Stuttgart. The study carried out in 2017 on behalf of the European Commission is the only official survey on TFA in food to date. At that time, 27 European wines showed an average concentration of 50 µg/l, with a maximum value of 120 µg/l. In contrast, the new study from 2025 shows a median of 110 µg/l, with peak values of 320 µg/l.
(4) As recognised by the European Commission, TFA is considered a “relevant” metabolite due to its proposed harmonised classification as a reproductive toxicant under CLP Regulation 1272/2008. Consequently, the limit value of 0.1 µg/l in groundwater applies to TFA. It is worrying that this limit value is regularly exceeded for TFA – in some cases even the threshold value of 10 µg/l for non-relevant metabolites is exceeded. This clearly shows that the requirements of the Plant Protection Products Regulation – in particular Article 4(3) and Article 29(1)(e) – and the Groundwater Directive are no longer being met by plant protection products containing PFAS. According to Article 44(3,a) of the EU Plant Protection Products Regulation, Member States are obliged to revoke the authorisations of all affected products.
(5) In December 2024, the European Commission proposed the non-renewal of the PFAS active substance flutolanil. As part of the risk assessment, TFA was identified as the main metabolite in plants. In view of the possible reproductive toxicity of TFA and its exceptionally high persistence and mobility, flutolanil poses a significant risk to consumers and groundwater. An extension of the authorisation should therefore be ruled out. We call on you to support the Commission’s proposal at the meeting of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (SCoPAFF) on 14 and 15 May. Furthermore, we ask you – in accordance with Article 44(3,a) of the EU Plant Protection Products Regulation – to withdraw the authorisations of all plant protection products containing PFAS.
Here you will find general information on the PFAS and TFA issue
What is TFA? And what is PFAS?
TFA belongs to the PFAS chemicals. This is a large group of substances comprising up to 10,000 individual substances. What they all have in common is that they are man-made, very long-lasting and mobile. Some of them have been proven to be toxic to humans. Once they enter the environment, they remain there virtually forever, as they are very stable. They cannot be filtered out or destroyed. This is why they are referred to as forever chemicals.
Due to their water-, dirt- and grease-repellent properties, PFAS are used in a wide range of areas. For example, they can be found in consumer products such as non-stick pans, rain jackets, pizza boxes and dental floss. However, they are also widely used in medicines and pesticides – toxins used in conventional agriculture. PFAS are also used in fire-fighting foams and as coolants.
More details and frequently asked questions about PFAS can be found in this document.
Underestimated TFA – already a problem or only in the future?
TFA is a PFAS and is actually the final degradation product of various larger PFAS substances. TFA itself is also a very stable molecule and persists in the environment. TFA enters water and agricultural products primarily via PFAS pesticides. When these chemicals are used in agriculture, they enter the soil and can be washed into surface water and groundwater. However, this has been ignored until now, which is why there are currently no threshold values for TFA in the Drinking Water Directive and Pesticides Regulation. Now, almost the entire environment is contaminated with TFA – with as yet unknown consequences.
Thanks in no small part to the PAN Europe study, this underestimated molecule is finally receiving the attention it urgently needs, and action can be taken.
Overall, however, other PFAS are also inadequately regulated, as environmental organisations have found. Due to their longevity and the proven toxicity of various PFAS, expert authorities in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Denmark have called for restrictions on these forever chemicals. Read the statement from BUND in Germany here.
How harmful are TFA and PFAS? [iii]
Very little is known about the effects of TFA. Other well-researched eternal chemicals are linked to hormonal changes, including fertility problems and malformations, damage to the immune system and an increased risk of cancer. Over 20% of children already have PFAS concentrations in their bodies that exceed the health guideline value.
TFA is suspected of being reprotoxic.
How can you avoid PFAS in everyday life?
As a consumer, you can consciously take steps to reduce your exposure to PFAS. For example, you can use PFAS-free cosmetics, avoid non-stick pans and make sure that your outdoor clothing is free of these chemicals.
BUND Germany has some useful tips here:
– PFAS in cosmetics (pdf also available in Downloads)