Popular butter missing from stores after chemical scare
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Bakers may have noticed for the past two months that one of their favorite butters is missing from store shelves. There's a good reason. The company is one of many that has been phasing out a widely-used chemical that's been found to be toxic from its wrapping.
Kerrygold Irish Butter is prized by many consumers for its grassfed goodness.
But what consumers may not have realized is that the grease-resistant wrapper contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl carbons, PFAS for short, a toxic artificial compound.
"They last forever. They're called the forever chemicals because they're very persistent," Graham Peaslee, a biochemist from University of Notre Dame said.
Peaslee co-authored studies on PFAS. His team uses a special particle accelerator to test fluorine levels in products.
"They are used in over 1600 different industrial processes and products," Peaslee said. "They make Teflon pans non-sticky. They make clothing waterproof. They make packaging waterproof."
In late 2022, Kerrygold stopped restocking its foil-wrapped butter to retool its packaging for California and New York ahead of new state PFAS laws.
The company provided a statement that reads in part, "We will continue to ensure packaging for our products remains compliant with all relevant state legislation and regulatory requirements."
Kerrygold's butter wrapping is not linked to bad health outcomes.
But PFAS in general have been linked to certain cancers and other health dangers like high cholesterol and pre-eclampsia in those who are pregnant.
"We've since discovered that all these PFAS are immune suppressants," Peaslee said. "So they suppress your immune system and that means any opportunistic disease, including some types of cancer, could take over."
11 states including Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware now have rules either banning or reducing PFAS levels in items ranging from carpets, clothing and cosmetics, to food wrappers and containers.
Many companies have voluntarily removed intentionally-added PFAS from their products or packaging.
The site, PFAS Central by scientists at the Green Policy Institute lists dozens of companies with PFAS-free products including Clean at Sephora, IKEA, H&M and Chick-Fil-A food packaging.
"The big companies have pledged to phase out by 2025, and smaller companies are already doing it," Peaslee said.
Peaslee said they're hard to come by, but consumers should start looking for labels that say "no PFAS."
Kerrygold said its popular butter is now returning to store shelves with updated packaging.