How is this even debatable? Nobody wants these chemicals anywhere near them.
Don't we? I've got a bunch of non-stick pans that I love cooking on (I checked the brand I use most, and their pans are coated in PTFE, a PFAS). I've also got a roll of PTFE tape for plumbing around the house (basically ubiquitous for that purpose), and some PTFE tubing for hobby use (PTFE tubing is in the majority of 3D printers).
I'm as or more concerned about the plastics in food packaging myself. Hard to avoid with so much processed food in most grocery stores though. Wouldn't mind taking a few steps back. Considering we grow well more than enough food to actually feed the world at this point.
At the same time I don't have to worry about nicking or overheating the teflon, and stainless steel pans tend to have better heft and thicker bottoms.
I know we live in an AI post-search-engine world but...
I don't think 99% of people ever get their cookware that hot.
Anyway, a colleague caught it in his hands which was surprising given he wasn't that nimble. The bird didn't appear the least bit sick and he likely caught it because it was used to having people around. The aim was to return it to its owner if we could find the person (it was an industrial area but there were many homes in the street). Incidentally, we weren't bird owners so managing a lost bird was a new experience.
We borrowed a largish birdcage that hadn't been used for years, cleaned it up and bought special canary feed and a cuttlefish etc. from the local pet shop, and we hung the birdcage and canary in a partly-shaded area without direct sunlight just outside the factory door with a sign on it to the effect 'do you own this bird?'. Every night we brought the cage in and covered it with a sheet just as I'd seen my grandmother do with her canary when I was a kid.
This went on for about two weeks or so and the bird seemed well and healthy—and we'd gotten quite used to the bird happily chirping away outside the front door. One day I noticed fruit flies around a garbage can inside the factory area and sprayed inside it with normal household pyrethrin-type insecticide which is usually pretty innocuous (at least to humans). Moreover, I was well aware that the canary was in the factory albeit 40/50 feet away so I was careful and deliberately confined the spray to inside the garbage bin.
Next day when I came in I found the canary dead at the bottom of its cage and I was considerably upset over its death as I'd not only gotten used to having this cute little creature around but it was immediately apparent to me that my spraying could have been the cause although I just couldn't see how such little amount of spray would have traveled that large distance.
It would be interesting to know exactly how sensitive canaries are to pyrethroids and how others manage to keep their pet birds safe in these circumstances.
Fluoropolymers and fluorosurfactants have unique properties that make them very difficult to substitute. I'm not sufficiently informed to comment on the possible health impacts of fluorinated hydrocarbons, but I can say that a world without them will be poorer in countless small ways. That might well be a price worth paying, but we shouldn't pretend that it's an easy decision.
What I was thinking of is the claimed "PFOA-free" on some new cookware is the same as "PFAS-free" which it clearly isn't.
Though PTFE is so inert, I don't think it faces the same problems as PFOA and other PFAS used in firefighting.
Before someone claims to the contrary - I basically only use TWO pans now for all my cooking - both 14" carbon steel pans I initially conditioned that have only gotten more non-stick as I've used them. I regularly cook over-easy eggs, scrambled eggs, and other foods that are apparently only possible in teflon non-stick pans if you believe the literature.
Before putting in your eggs, heat up the pan and put in some oil/butter. A spatula that can scrape well (flat-nosed, or moderately flexible plastic/silicon) is also helpful.
For a spell some years back, I had a game of "find the worst pan in the kitchen and see if I can cook my eggs without them sticking". Not quite a 100% success rate, but pretty close. (That was mostly scrambled, though. Fried eggs and omelettes are more difficult.)
It's true that a non-stick pan makes it much easier a beginner, but the downside is that said beginner will destroy a non-stick pan within weeks.
[1] https://www.victorinox.com/us/en/Products/Cutlery/Accessorie...
[2] https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/victorinox-slotte...
There is. Seasoned cast iron.
The problem with cast iron is that it requires work to season it properly and maintain it. People are lazy.
> There's no good substitute for PTFE in rain clothes either.
They used to use oil and wax. They were called oilskin coats. I'm not sure if it's because they are niche, but now such coats are pretty expensive. Problem: Cost.
So you're right in some sense - the alternatives don't provide us with the same level of cost and convenience.
Oilskin coats are also much heavier and less effective at keeping out water. The main problem isn't cost, it's that they're much worse as rain wear.
I cook a lot, and I have no interest in non-stick cookware.
The only way I've heard of people screwing up is by to using it infrequently. If you season with canola or vegetable oil, and use it every time you cook, then the patina takes care of itself.
To clean, scrape using chain mail or a plastic scraper, such as the ones from pampered chef or lodge, and be sparing with the soap. Do not put it in the dishwasher.
If you ignore the above, then scrape off as much of the old patina as possible, then coat lightly with oil + bake at 300 for an hour.
Compare the above to non-stick, where getting it near anything sharp destroys the pan, and you have to buy a new set every 1-5 years. Re-seasoning a pan is much less effort (and cheaper / more environmentally friendly) than shopping for a new one!
Also non stick burn when they get hot which is an awful trait in a pan. I cook some insane fish and beef and it is the most braindread process with a cast iron.
I don't think the issues for the well-known brands have much to do with the materials. Instead, I think it's because there are a few traditional brands using traditional (non-optimized) production techniques, then charging large margins.
That's fine if you want to pay for the best of the best, but it would be nice if there were a bargain route too. e.g., for iron cookware, two good brands are Lodge and La Creuset. Heirloom-quality Lodge pans start at $25; La Creuset is many times more expensive because of the [traditional] ceramic coating.
I don't know of a company that's comparable to Lodge, but that makes oiled/waxed outerwear.
Barbour traditionally made "oil coats" for fishermen. Then later waxed cotton jackets for farmers in the UK. They last for generations, you can rewax and repair them.
Belstaff made waxed motorcycle wear.
Both do amazingly high quality, if expensive, modern waxed and oiled cotton or canvas jackets and clothing.
Unless you count the workers in the foundry that is making them.
Needless to say, don't do that and cast iron presents no risks.
At the end of the day, a really silly reason to swear off cast iron.
Consumerism really did kill "us" for "me" didn't it.