The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) decided on Wednesday 22 July to revise downwards the toxicological reference values for trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), a degradation product of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and certain pesticides.
Based on new scientific data, EFSA sets the acceptable daily intake at 0.014 mg/kg of body weight per day, compared with 0.05 mg/kg previously, meaning a threshold 3.5 times lower. It is also setting an acute reference dose of 0.07 mg/kg of body weight.
This revision is based in particular on new evidence showing that TFA can alter thyroxine levels, a hormone produced by the thyroid gland. However, EFSA stresses that uncertainties remain, particularly regarding the effects of long-term exposure, carcinogenicity and developmental immunotoxicity, which led it to apply an additional safety factor.
The European Commission and the Member States will now use these new values to examine possible measures aimed at ensuring consumer protection. At the same time, EFSA and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) are continuing their work on the formation of TFA from PFAS pesticides and its behaviour in soil and water, with results expected by summer 2027.
ECHA considers TFA (found in high concentrations in tap water) to be a reproductive toxicant (see EUROPE 13885/16), and the European Commission had confirmed that this substance could be banned from sale and use by the general public through its classification as a reproductive toxicant (see EUROPE 13891/8).
More details: https://aeur.eu/f/mz7 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)