What we should know about ‘forever chemicals’

In February 2026, the UK government published its first PFAS plan to tackle the emerging problem of ‘forever chemicals’ in our environment.

According to DEFRA, PFAS (per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) are a family of thousands of man-made chemicals which are incredibly good at resisting heat, water and oil, hence their widespread use by manufacturers in all kinds of household items. The problem is that once they are in the environment, PFAS don’t break down naturally. While these chemicals may not actually last ‘forever’, they can certainly sit around in our water, soil and air for hundreds of years – well beyond our lifetime!

Due to the growing evidence that some PFAS may pose risks to human health, wildlife and our natural environment, the UK government have devised a new PFAS Plan which aims to set out a collaborative approach to understanding, managing and reducing the risks associated with PFAS. An important caveat is that continued use will be allowed where no safe alternatives exist, such as in medical devices and clean energy technology. 

PFAS are used in a wide variety of consumer products such as cosmetics, clothes, electronics and food packaging, and have been found to be present in our food and drinking water, and subsequently in human blood and breast milk. Although it is almost impossible to completely avoid coming into contact with them, being aware of PFAS can help you make more informed decisions as a consumer. It is also very important that we ask our government representatives to prioritise issues like PFAS so that we can enforce monitoring and regulation of their use in production.

You can also join a movement to ban PFAS production and use in the EU by 2030.

Please see the poster below for more tips and advice on forever chemicals.