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"Right now it’s hard to find a pan that uses Teflon in the old continent." The French company Tefal sells its frying pans across Europe. It is one of the most

"Right now it’s hard to find a pan that uses Teflon in the old continent." The French company Tefal sells its frying pans across Europe. It is one of the most popular kitchen product around. As the name suggests, these used Teflon as some point. Is Teflon really not used any more in making these pans, and if not, then what is? EDIT: I suspect that in the quotation above, the author really meant "PFOA" not Teflon.

conradfr 8y ago
Yes according to their faq they use PTFE and not PFOA, but not sure since when. > Tefal/T-fal non-stick coating is a technical coating made from a polymer name polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). It is PTFE which gives the cookware the non-stick properties. Public health authorities in Europe and in the USA demonstrated that PTFE is an inert substance which does not chemically react with food, water or domestic cleaning products. It is totally harmless in case of ingestion. These Public health authorities confirmed the harmlessness of PTFE non-stick coatings in cookware. In fact, PTFE is so safe that it is frequently used in the medical profession to coat pacemakers and the tiny tubes made to replace arteries. It is also used for surgical procedures for the benefit of patients with severe kidney disease, and some joint prostheses are also partly coated with PTFE. > PFOA is the standard English abbreviation of perfluorooctanoic acid. PFOA is used in the manufacturing process of many products such as non-stick coatings, compatible microwave packaging, some textiles, stain resistant carpet, pizza boxes which do not absorb fat, etc. On its finished products, Tefal/T-fal's commitment is to guarantee the absence of PFOA, lead and cadmium and to guarantee that its products with Tefal/T-fal non-stick coating are harmless for the environment and the consumer.
- hammock 8y ago
  PTFE is not harmless in the body - the body cannot break it down - and there is no independent study showing it as such. "PTFE is so safe that it is frequently used in the medical profession to coat pacemakers and the tiny tubes made to replace arteries" was written by a 3M corp comms flunky.
  - hinkley 8y ago
    And only means that it’s much safer than dying from complications of having a medical device embedded in your chest. Which is much safer than dropping dead from a second heart attack. This is what we like to call “faint praise”. Teflon: much much safer than a second heart attack.
    - Doxin 8y ago
      Wouldn't it also be used to coat pacemakers etc specifically because the body can't break it down? Having teflon around a pacemaker is a different thing than it accumulating in random places in the body.
      - hammock 8y ago
        You're not disagreeing with each other
- hexane360 8y ago
  Teflon is a brand name for PTFE. PFOA is one of several possible organofluorides that can be used to manufacture PTFE. Tefal didn't replace PFOA with PTFE, because PFOA isn't a nonstick coating to begin with. In fact, that site tells us nothing, because PFOA is largely a problem for the workers manufacturing it, so telling us that it's not in the "finished products" doesn't address the main concern. Furthermore, other synthesis routes aren't necessarily better; you have to have a reactive organofluoride at some point in the pipeline.

conradfr 8y ago

Yes according to their faq they use PTFE and not PFOA, but not sure since when. > Tefal/T-fal non-stick coating is a technical coating made from a polymer name polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). It is PTFE which gives the cookware the non-stick properties. Public health authorities in Europe and in the USA demonstrated that PTFE is an inert substance which does not chemically react with food, water or domestic cleaning products. It is totally harmless in case of ingestion. These Public health authorities confirmed the harmlessness of PTFE non-stick coatings in cookware. In fact, PTFE is so safe that it is frequently used in the medical profession to coat pacemakers and the tiny tubes made to replace arteries. It is also used for surgical procedures for the benefit of patients with severe kidney disease, and some joint prostheses are also partly coated with PTFE. > PFOA is the standard English abbreviation of perfluorooctanoic acid. PFOA is used in the manufacturing process of many products such as non-stick coatings, compatible microwave packaging, some textiles, stain resistant carpet, pizza boxes which do not absorb fat, etc. On its finished products, Tefal/T-fal's commitment is to guarantee the absence of PFOA, lead and cadmium and to guarantee that its products with Tefal/T-fal non-stick coating are harmless for the environment and the consumer.

hammock 8y ago
PTFE is not harmless in the body - the body cannot break it down - and there is no independent study showing it as such. "PTFE is so safe that it is frequently used in the medical profession to coat pacemakers and the tiny tubes made to replace arteries" was written by a 3M corp comms flunky.
- hinkley 8y ago
  And only means that it’s much safer than dying from complications of having a medical device embedded in your chest. Which is much safer than dropping dead from a second heart attack. This is what we like to call “faint praise”. Teflon: much much safer than a second heart attack.
  - Doxin 8y ago
    Wouldn't it also be used to coat pacemakers etc specifically because the body can't break it down? Having teflon around a pacemaker is a different thing than it accumulating in random places in the body.
    - hammock 8y ago
      You're not disagreeing with each other
hexane360 8y ago
Teflon is a brand name for PTFE. PFOA is one of several possible organofluorides that can be used to manufacture PTFE. Tefal didn't replace PFOA with PTFE, because PFOA isn't a nonstick coating to begin with. In fact, that site tells us nothing, because PFOA is largely a problem for the workers manufacturing it, so telling us that it's not in the "finished products" doesn't address the main concern. Furthermore, other synthesis routes aren't necessarily better; you have to have a reactive organofluoride at some point in the pipeline.