Study Finds 95% of Tested Beers Contain Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), better known as forever chemicals, are gaining notoriety for their ability to linger in the environment and for possible links to health problems. Now, scientists are finding these chemicals in surprising places, including beer. A study published in ACS Environmental Science & Technology analyzed beers brewed across different regions of the United States. The results showed that the highest PFAS levels appeared in beers made in areas where local water supplies are already known to be contaminated.

“As an occasional beer drinker myself, I wondered whether PFAS in water supplies was making its way into our pints,” says research lead Jennifer Hoponick Redmon. “I hope these findings inspire water treatment strategies and policies that help reduce the likelihood of PFAS in future pours.”

PFAS are synthetic chemicals created for their ability to resist water, oil, and stains. They have been detected in rivers, groundwater, and public water systems across the U.S. and globally. While breweries generally use water treatment and filtration processes, those systems are not equipped to filter out PFAS.

To explore the extent of contamination, Hoponick Redmon and her team adapted a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) method normally used to test PFAS levels in drinking water. They applied this approach to 23 beers, including those from American breweries located in areas with documented water contamination as well as well-known domestic and international brands that source their water from less transparent locations.

The researchers found a strong correlation between PFAS concentrations in municipal drinking water and levels in locally brewed beer — a phenomenon that Hoponick Redmon and colleagues say has not yet been studied in U.S. retail beer. They found PFAS in 95% of the beers they tested. These include perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), two forever chemicals with recently established EPA limits in drinking water. Notably, the team found that beers brewed near the Cape Fear River Basin in North Carolina, an area with known PFAS pollution, had the highest levels and most diverse mix of forever chemicals, including PFOS and PFOA.

This work shows that PFAS contamination at one source can spread into other products, and the researchers call for greater awareness among brewers, consumers, and regulators to limit overall PFAS exposure. These results also highlight the possible need for water treatment upgrades at brewing facilities as PFAS regulations in drinking water change or updates to municipal water system treatment are implemented.

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