Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) is a chemical with very mobile and persistent properties that is one of many per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) also known as the ‘forever chemicals’ due to their longevity in the environment. The spotlight is increasingly being turned on TFA because, as monitoring of this chemical steps up, it is becoming clear that it is contaminating the environment all over the globe. This monitoring is also showing us that we are exposed to TFA via our food, our drinking water and even our wine. With current technology, it is extremely difficult and prohibitively expensive to remove this chemical from our drinking water.
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has just started the public consultation on classifying TFA as a persistent, mobile and reprotoxic chemical.
Concerns about PFAS are well-documented. The weight of evidence that they are polluting the environment and our bodies with potentially harmful effects led to a proposal from four EU member states and Norway for a broad restriction of PFAS, which was consulted on by ECHA in 2023. Less has been known about the small-chain PFAS like TFA, but now evidence is mounting of just how widespread contamination is.
CHEM Trust has produced an FAQ on TFA to shine a light on this lesser-known PFAS family member.
Health concerns
Despite warnings about TFA over the last 20 years, the potential for its health impacts is only becoming more apparent now. Studies have indicated adverse effects on liver function as well as potential reproductive toxicity. Germany has notified ECHA to propose a classification as a reprotoxic, and PMT (persistent, mobile and toxic) and vPvM (very persistent and very mobile) substance and the public consultation by ECHA is now open. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is currently considering whether it needs to change the health-based reference values for TFA, including the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI).
Our exposure to TFA
There is increasing data to show that we are likely to be regularly exposed to TFA through multiple sources. Monitoring for TFA in drinking water is not obligatory in the EU, and forthcoming changes to the Drinking Water Directive only include it in a measure of ‘total PFAS’. However, testing by NGOs and water companies confirmed its widespread presence in tap and bottled water, and some member states have set their own guideline values. For example, in the Walloon region of Belgium, TFA was found in 598 or 642 areas tested and in some cases exceeded the guideline value (2.2 micrograms per litre) for protecting health used in Wallonia.
Several studies (summarised in the paper The Global Threat from the Irreversible Accumulation of Trifluoroacetic Acid (TFA) ) show that TFA has also been found in plant-based food and drink because it accumulates in plants. So, we are probably exposed to TFA with our morning cup of tea and evening glass of wine, and children may be exposed via juices, fruit purees, and other plant-based foods.
Main sources of TFA
The only way to stop further contamination of TFA is to stop the production of the precursors. Although some TFA is manufactured in the EU, the main source is as a breakdown product of other PFAS. Fluorinated gases (F-gases) (used, for example, in refrigeration and air conditioning in cars) and pesticides are major sources of TFA. Unfortunately, a new batch of F-gases developed to have lower greenhouse gas potential are precursors to TFA. It’s vital that alternatives are developed quickly because some of the F-gases that create TFA are used in the clean transition products that we need more of, such as heat pumps and cooling for electric vehicles. See CHEM Trust’s FAQ on PFAS and alternatives, showing that alternatives are either already available or in development.
What’s the solution?
The key solution lies in adopting and implementing the universal PFAS restriction and also banning PFAS pesticides. The uPFAS restriction is currently being considered by the scientific committees in ECHA.
Dr Anna Watson from CHEM Trust said:
“TFA is being found everywhere and it can’t be removed from the environment. There are enough indications that it can harm our health to take action. The good news is that a solution is already in front of the EU Commission in the form of the universal PFAS restriction. Implementing a broad restriction on PFAS will encourage the use of safer alternatives. allowing a truly clean transition to a zero-pollution low-carbon economy.”
Read more about TFA in our FAQ here and about the EU universal PFAS restriction here.
