SACRAMENTO – The California Assembly voted May 27 to advance a bill targeting the use of toxic PFAS “forever chemical” pesticides found in nearly 40% of state-sampled California-grown non-organic fruits and vegetables.
The vote on Assembly Bill 1603 moves the nation’s largest agricultural state closer to phasing out a pervasive source of PFAS contamination. The bill now heads to the Senate.
PFAS pesticides were also found in up to 50% of California surface water samples, and in about 45% to 55% of sediment samples, according to a recent Environmental Working Group analysis.
EWG is cosponsoring AB 1603, introduced by Assemblymember Nick Schultz (D-Burbank). If enacted, it would require these pesticides to be clearly identified as being PFAS and it would halt approvals of the use of new PFAS pesticides in California.
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation currently allows 53 pesticides to be used in the state. Meanwhile, 17 PFAS pesticides approved by the federal Environmental Protection Agency could be added to the state’s crop fields in the near future if not for this legislation.
As approved by the Assembly, AB 1603 would also properly identify and notify the public when PFAS pesticides are used on agricultural fields and require growers to obtain county permits before using the chemicals on crops.
Under pressure from the pesticides industry and some agricultural interests, Schultz committed to removing sections of the bill that would outright ban all uses of PFAS pesticides, a vow necessary for the Assembly to support advancing the legislation.
Other bill cosponsors include Californians for Pesticide Reform, the Center for Environmental Health and the Pesticide Action and Agroecology Network.
“The country depends on California for its fruits and vegetables, but right now they’re being seasoned with chemicals that never break down,” said Bernadette Del Chiaro, EWG’s senior vice president for California.
“We cannot claim to lead the world in public health while allowing millions of pounds of toxic PFAS to be deliberately sprayed on our most iconic crops,” she said.
A growing crisis in California fields
An EWG analysis of state data found PFAS pesticide residues on 37% of 930 samples of non-organic California-grown produce, including nine out of 10 samples of peaches, nectarines and plums.
Farmers applied 15 million pounds of PFAS pesticides across all 58 California counties between 2018 and 2023. These chemicals don't break down in the environment and can build up in the body, creating the potential for long-term harm.
“As a father, I don't want my kids eating strawberries contaminated with chemicals that will stay in their bodies for decades,” said Schultz.
“AB 1603 is a vital step toward ensuring California’s agricultural legacy is defined by health and innovation, not by the accumulation of toxic PFAS in our soil and water. We need to help our farmers transition away from these persistent chemicals so that California can be a global leader in food safety,” he said.
Why are some PFAS pesticides
PFAS are a group of thousands of human-made chemicals used in a wide range of consumer, industrial and electronic products, in addition to pesticides.
PFAS’ carbon-fluorine bond is among the strongest in chemistry. It is the reason they don’t break down – and the reason they’re called “forever chemicals.”
“The scale of this contamination is staggering,” said Susan Little, EWG’s legislative director in California. “Millions of pounds of PFAS are used on everyday California crops.
“AB 1603 takes a big step forward by immediately banning new state approvals and requiring full transparency regarding their use,” she added.
As these chemicals partially break down over time, they can form other harmful compounds, including trifluoroacetic acid, or TFA, which is increasingly being detected in the environment, wildlife and people. One study estimates that PFAS pesticide use in California could generate between 185,000 and 616,000 pounds of TFA each year.
Emerging research links TFA to reproductive harm and immune suppression, raising growing concerns about its spread and potential health risks.
An EPA analysis noted that 36 PFAS pesticides – 25 of which are registered in California – lack updated developmental and reproductive toxicity tests. Immunotoxicity studies are routinely waived in pesticide applications, despite growing evidence that PFAS chemicals are particularly harmful to the immune system.
“By the time these PFAS residues reach our plates, they have become part of a toxic cocktail that can suppress the immune system and harm reproductive health,” said Varun Subramaniam, EWG science analyst. “That raises serious concerns about the long-term health risks of using these chemicals on food crops.”
“The most troubling part is how little we know about their safety. We’re spraying millions of pounds of chemicals on food without understanding their full health impacts or considering what little we do know. It’s unconscionable,” he added.
California’s agricultural PFAS use means residents of the Golden State get hit twice – through contaminated food and through contaminated water. PFAS pesticides leave residues on fruits and vegetables, and the chemicals get into the surface water that become drinking water.
States leading on regulation
The federal EPA regulates and approves pesticides for national use, but states aren’t required to follow suit. California operates its own approval system: The state’s Department of Pesticide Regulation must independently evaluate and authorize each chemical before farmers can use it.
That gives California the much needed authority to protect residents – power the state has largely chosen not to use when it comes to PFAS pesticides.
While California remains one of the world’s largest users of PFAS pesticides, other jurisdictions have moved to restrict or ban them. In 2023, Maine enacted the nation’s first ban on PFAS pesticides, starting in 2030. In 2023, Minnesota passed a broad ban on nonessential PFAS uses, including pesticides, phasing them out by 2032.
Denmark banned six PFAS pesticide ingredients in 2025. And the European Union has prohibited 23 of the PFAS pesticides heavily used in California, including bifenthrin, trifluralin and flufenacet.
AB 1603 would start to move California in line with these other states and jurisdictions, laying the groundwork for the nation’s “salad bowl” to once again be a public health leader and help ensure what we are putting on America’s kitchen table is free from PFAS pesticides.
“California has been a public health bellwether for decades, from car emissions to chemical safety,” said Del Chiaro. “But we've been silent on PFAS pesticides, even though we are one of the biggest users.
“AB 1603 begins to change that. This is the least we can do for families and communities struggling to contain widespread PFAS contamination in our soil, air, water and food,” she added.
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The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action.
