For the last few years, major companies and smaller businesses alike have found themselves at the center of lawsuits over per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and these suits are only becoming more common. The litigation has moved up from targeting the manufacturers of PFAS at the ground floor—now consumer product companies in the beauty, health, and food industries are all under fire. Companies like 3M, DuPont, Corteva, and most recently, Carrier Global, have reached settlements in the billions of dollars for claims related to the manufacture and distribution of PFAS. Other industry giants like Almay, Covergirl, Health-Ade Kombucha, and Bolthouse Farms, just to name a few, have found themselves embroiled in suits seeking damages for bodily injury, property damage and other alleged injuries.

In April 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced new regulations on these “forever chemicals” setting legally enforceable maximum concentration levels and requiring public water systems to monitor for PFAS compounds. In addition, the new regulations require public water facilities to provide the public with information about the levels of these chemicals in the water. The EPA also designated two types of PFAS as hazardous substances. Previously in February, the Food and Drug Administration announced a ban on food packaging containing PFAS. Several states have passed bills enacting bans on PFAS in a variety of products including children’s clothes and toys, cleaning products, plastics, personal care products like cosmetics and dental floss, and food packaging, mirroring the suits companies have seen ramping up in the last few years.