PARIS — The French National Assembly on Thursday unanimously adopted a bill aimed at restricting the manufacture and sale of products containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — also known as PFAS, or “forever chemicals.” The members of Parliament, backed by the government, voted to exclude kitchen utensils from the scope of the text.
Thanks to an intense lobbying push, manufacturers of frying pans and saucepans — including the SEB group, which owns Tefal — are exempt from this ban under the proposed law penned by French Green MPs.
Majority groups initially tried to delay the ban on kitchen utensils until 2030 — a timetable refused by the French Green members of Parliament, or MPs, who instead suggested an exemption until 2026.
This counteroffer was rejected by the majority and the government — represented by French Industry Minister Roland Lescure — which preferred to simply delete the paragraph concerning these products.
