Inevitably, all of this will end up on our plates: thousands of acres of land are almost certainly contaminated by PFAS, these “eternal pollutants.”
The “Poison” Spreading Across the Fields
The reason? “Biosolids” — the treated sludge from wastewater — are widely spread as fertilizer on thousands of acres of farmland in France. According to two sources from a France 3 and Disclose investigation, among the 100 PFAS-emitting facilities in France, a quarter have repurposed their waste for agricultural use in recent years.
The spreading of the “poison” on fields? Paradoxically, the spreading of biosolids has been actively encouraged by public authorities for decades. In France, 1% of fertilizers applied to soils come from publicly owned wastewater treatment plants.
Highly Persistent Molecules
Until now, the dissemination of PFAS in the environment was mainly driven by chemical plants, such as Arkema and Daikin, near Lyon. This new investigation also highlights two other sectors: the paper and textile industries. “A third of the 23 factories we identified belong to these supply chains. PFAS are used there for their grease- or moisture-resistant properties.”
But these highly persistent molecules seep into wastewater without being removed by treatment plants. A restricted-distribution note from the Meuse prefecture, sent to the Ministry of Ecological Transition in August 2025, states that “controls conducted on sludges from national industries, especially paper and textiles, revealed PFAS concentrations of concern.” Whether spread directly or through composting, PFAS are ultimately likely to contaminate food, with an increased risk of disease.
