Last updated: December 2024 | Medically reviewed by: [REVIEWER NAME, CREDENTIALS]
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical or legal advice. Get advice from a qualified professional for your particular situation.
That nonstick pan with the huge “PFOA-free” label you bought? Almost certainly contains PFAS. T-fal, Cuisinart, Scanpan – they’re all using the same marketing language. All it means? They got rid of one bad chemical. What happened to that PTFE coating that never left? Still PFAS, though. When it comes down to it, you’re still cooking with a fluoropolymer. That coating’s still sitting there on your pan.
Bring this up with someone shopping for pans and you’ll get a confused stare. In 2015, the EPA finished its PFOA Stewardship Program and basically told companies to quit using PFOA. Brands complied. Companies slapped “PFOA-free” labels on their boxes and kept selling the same PTFE pans. Problem solved, right?
It wasn’t. A 2022 study in Nature Sustainability found that a single scratch on a PTFE-coated pan can release roughly 9,100 PFAS-containing microplastic particles. Push a PTFE pan over 500 degrees and toxic fumes start coming off it. The EPA’s own science advisors have raised concerns about these replacement chemicals turning up in PTFE pans.
We checked 18 cookware brands – the ones you’d actually see at the store. We dug through company reports, independent test results, and safety documentation to figure out which brands don’t use PFAS.
18 Cookware Brands: PFAS Status Breakdown
1. Teflon (by Chemours) — CONTAINS PFAS
PFAS Status: Yes — PTFE is the core product.
Coating: PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene)
Teflon isn’t a cookware brand. Teflon’s just a coating brand that belongs to Chemours – DuPont spun that company off in 2015. Teflon is PTFE, a fluoropolymer classified as PFAS by definition. Yeah, Chemours dropped PFOA when the EPA came down on them, but that PTFE coating? Still there.
Heat Teflon over 500 degrees or scratch it up, and you’ll get PFAS particles plus toxic fumes. In severe cases, this triggers “polymer fume fever.” Dozens of brands license the Teflon name. If it says Teflon, it contains PFAS. Period. Safe alternative: Any PTFE-free ceramic or uncoated pan.
2. T-fal — CONTAINS PFAS
PFAS Status: Yes — most product lines use PTFE.
Coating: PTFE-based (Titanium, Expert Pro, and other proprietary nonstick coatings)
This is the “PFOA-free” problem in miniature. T-fal, which Groupe SEB owns, plasters that claim all over their marketing. Accurate? Yes. The whole story? Not close. The best-selling Ultimate Hard Anodized and Signature collections all use PTFE-based nonstick coatings.
T-fal does make a limited ceramic-coated line called Ceramic Chef. Makes up maybe 5% of what they sell. If you’re buying T-fal, that ceramic line is the only PFAS-free option. Safe alternative: T-fal Ceramic Chef line, or switch to GreenPan or Caraway.