The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a warning on Tuesday regarding the potential health risks posed by chemicals found in sewage sludge used by some farmers as fertilizer. The EPA highlighted that exposure to food from farms utilizing sewage sludge could increase the risk of developing cancer and other health conditions.
The specific chemicals of concern, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), belong to a class of per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds (PFAS) known as 'forever chemicals' due to their persistence in the environment and the human body.