Who are the safest tea brands without PFAS “forever chemicals?” This is the question that Mamavation has been attempting to answer for you by sending the most popular tea brands to our EPA-certified laboratory to test. After all that testing, which tea brands and tea products do we recommend? You’ve trusted Mamavation to bring you topics like (1) safest cooking oils tested for phthalates, (2) safest coffees tested for pesticides, PFAS “forever chemicals,” and mycotoxins, and (3) safest protein powders tested for pesticides, PFAS “forever chemicals”, phthalates, and heavy metals, now join us for the safest teas without PFAS “forever chemicals.”
Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. Note that Mamavation has only “spot-checked” the industry and thus we cannot make predictions about brands and products that we have not tested. Products and manufacturing aides can change without notice so buyer beware. This post contains affiliate links, with some to Amazon, which means Mamavation will receive a portion of those sales and we will use that to pay ourselves back for the testing. You can also give a tax-deductible donation to our consumer studies here through Environmental Health Sciences. Thank you!
Mamavation Found PFAS in Popular Teas
Mamavation has been testing several categories of teas for specific PFAS “forever chemicals,” and we thought it would be useful to bring you a synopsis of what was found thus far all together in one place. Note that some teas tested higher for PFAS compounds than others. The PFAS levels that were high enough to quantify are referred to as “quantifiable PFAS” and you’ll find all those results at the bottom of this post.
Here’s a quick synopsis of how much PFAS was found in each category:
- 91% of Earl Grey tea contained specific PFAS “forever chemicals,” and 25% of those teas had quantifiable PFAS.
- 54% of Chamomile tea contained specific PFAS “forever chemicals,” and 31% of those teas had quantifiable PFAS.
- 50% of green teas contained specific PFAS “forever chemicals,” and 33% of those teas had quantifiable PFAS.
PFAS “Forever Chemicals” Have Problematic Health Effects
PFAS “forever chemicals” are problematic for human health and the environment. They are considered ubiquitous, persistent, and toxic. Therefore, reducing the amount of PFAS you are exposed to from food, water, and other beverages like tea is imperative. Mamavation is dedicated to helping you do that when shopping for tea.
Here are some of the adverse health effects of different PFAS “forever chemicals:”
It’s also very clear, based on biomonitoring evidence from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), that PFAS are in all Americans. Therefore, these exposures can harm most Americans.
Recent Studies on PFAS in Teas Have Demonstrated Widespread Contamination
The past five years have seen a flurry of studies looking at specific PFAS compounds and certain foods and beverages like tea. One study claimed that people who drank more tea were more likely to have higher levels of PFAS in their blood. Here are some recent examples of studies done on teas:
Terrence Collins, Teresa Heinz Professor of Green Chemistry & Director of the Institute for Green Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University had this to say about the study: “This study looks at an important question for green tea drinkers. Are ‘forever chemicals’, PFAS compounds that the human body cannot break down and tends to hold on to, in the product contaminant profile? The results speak for themselves. No one wants to be ingesting PFAS when they drink green tea! It’s somewhat comforting that PFAS contamination is not universal, at least in Mamavation’s spot-testing. Green tea drinkers are now armed with the knowledge to send messages of approval or disapproval through their buying habits across the green tea business world.”
Mamavation’s Investigation of Earl Grey Tea, Chamomile Tea, & Green Tea and 40 Analyte PFAS Testing
Earl Grey Teas, Chamomile Teas, and Green Teas were purchased in 2024 and 2025. Each product was recorded in our database and sent directly to the lab within its original packaging.
Testing Loose Leaf Tea: Mamavation’s EPA-certified laboratory used method EPA 1633 to test for 40 PFAS compounds, including the following:
- Perflurobutanoic acid (PFBA)
- Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA)
- Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)
- Perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA)
- Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)
- Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)
- Perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA)
- Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnA)
- Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoA)
- Perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTrDA)
- Perfluorotetradecanoic acid (PFTeDA)
- Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)
- Perfluoropentansulfonic acid (PFPeS)
- Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS)
- Perfluoroheptanesulfonic acid (PFHpS)
- Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)
- Perfluoronanesulfonic acid (PFNS)
- Perfluorodecanesulfonic acid (PFDS)
- Perfluorododecanesulfonic acid (PFDoS)
- 1H,1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (4:2FTS)
- 1H,1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (6:2FTS)
- 1H,1H, 2H, 2H-Perfluorodecane sulfonic acid (8:2FTS)
- Perfluorooctanesulfonamide (PFOSA)
- N-methyl perfluorooctanesulfonamide (NMeFOSA)
- N-ethyl perfluorooctanesulfonamide (NEtFOSA)
- N-methyl perfluorooctanesulfonamidoacetic acid (NMeFOSE)
- N-ethyl perfluorooctanesulfonamidoethanol (NEtFOSE)
- Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA)
- 4,8-Dioxa-3H-perfluorononanoic acid (ADONA)
- Perfluoro-3-methoxypropanoic acid (PFMPA)
- Perfluoro-4-methoxybutanoic acid (PFMBA)
- Nonafluoro-3,6-dioxaheptanoic acid (NFDHA)
- 9-Chlorohexadecafluoro-3-oxanonane-1-sulfonic acid (9CI-PF3ONS)
- 11-Chloroeicosafluoro-3-oxaundecane-1-sulfonic acid (11CI-PF3OUdS)
- Perfluoro(2-ethoxyethane)sulfonic acid (PFEESA)
- 3-Perfluoropropyl propanoic acid (3:3FTCA)
- 2H,2H,3H,3H-Perfluorooctanoic acid (5:3FTCA)
- 3-Perfluoroheptyl propanoic acid (7:3FTCA)
Not Our Favorite Teas
Not Our Favorite Earl Grey
Our lab found quantifiable amounts of specific PFAS within these tea leaves. Of the 40 PFAS analytes tested for at least one was found. We also put brands here where we found over 200 ppm of total fluorine in the tea sachets.
Not Our Favorite Chamomile
These products were sent off to an EPA-certified laboratory. The tea leaves were tested for 40 PFAS analytes and each product had positive results. The tea bags were tested for fluorine, a marker of PFAS “forever chemicals.”
Not Our Favorite Green Tea
These products were sent off to an EPA-certified laboratory. The tea leaves were tested for 40 PFAS analytes, and each product had positive results.
Better Teas
Better Earl Grey
Our lab could not find quantifiable amounts of specific PFAS compounds; however, they did find the presence of at least one specific PFAS compound within the tea leaves. This means the lab could detect PFAS, but it wasn’t in high enough amounts to determine how much was in there. If tea bags were available, our lab also tested those bags separately for total fluorine, which is an indicator of PFAS and fluoride combined.
Better Chamomile
These products were sent off to an EPA-certified laboratory. The tea leaves were tested for 40 PFAS analytes and each product had positive results, however, the results were so small they were not quantifiable. The tea bags were tested for fluorine, a marker of PFAS “forever chemicals.” We also included one brand that did not have detectable PFAS, but had detectable fluorine in their tea bags.
Better Green Tea
These products were sent off to an EPA-certified laboratory. The tea leaves were tested for 40 PFAS analytes and each product had positive results, however, the results were so small they were not quantifiable.
Best Teas
Best Earl Grey
Our lab determined no PFAS compounds were found in the Earl Grey tea leaves. However, the tea bags had detectable fluorine.
Best Chamomile
These products were sent off to an EPA-certified laboratory. The tea leaves were tested for 40 PFAS analytes and each product had non-detect results. The tea bags were tested for fluorine, a marker of PFAS “forever chemicals,” and also had non-detect results.
Best Green Tea
These products were sent off to an EPA-certified laboratory. The tea leaves were tested for 40 PFAS analytes and each product had non-detect results.
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