A Proposal That Would Ban Manufacture, Supply, and Use of All Fluoropolymers and Most Fluorinated Reagents within the Entire EU

A change to EU law is proposed that would lead to a ban on manufacture, supply, and use of most per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substance (PFAS) materials. The proposed EU definition of PFAS is extremely broad, including most fluoroalkyl materials, regardless of molecular weight. Thus, reagents as simple as trifluoroacetic acid through fluorinated intermediates to polymers such as PTFE, PVDF, and Viton could be entirely banned, with the exception of API molecules themselves. The implications of such a ban for the chemical and (bio)pharma industries in Europe cannot be overstated. The EU Proposal is currently out for public consultation, and the purpose of this Perspective is both to raise awareness and to encourage contributions to the consultation process. Comments to the EU must be received by the deadline of 23:59 (Helsinki time) on September 25, 2023.