Consumer fraud alert: Swiss Diamond non-stick cookware made with same chemical as Teflon

My advice: Just buy cheaper teflon pans, don't abuse them on high heat, and replace them more frequently. That's what I do.

The gourmet kitchen store compleley duped me on this pan when I bought it. They told lies. I was suspicious of their claims on this pan and did not fall for it hook line and sinker but "they got me". I bought the pan in the late Eighties and there was no Internet to seek out info and protect the consumer back then.

Here is what the Scanpan website says:
SCANPAN Classic and SCANPAN Professional feature a patented nonstick surface that is created by firing a ceramic-titanium compound into the pan at 36,000° F and twice the speed of sound. The ceramic-titanium particles become one with the pan at that point. A subsequent application of a specially formulated PTFE provides the nonstick effect.

And:

PTFE (short for polytetrafluoroethylene) is the base compound for any and all nonstick coatings. PTFE provides the food release. The "SCANPAN formula" works with the patented ceramic-titanium surface construction to provide long lasting nonstick performance. This PTFE is safe to use for food preparation and is FDA approved. Only if the pan is accidentally overheated or cooked dry could temperatures be reached that may cause the PTFE portion to break down and emit fumes that have been known to be harmful to exotic birds, due to their extra sensitive respiratory system.

And:

SCANPAN Cookware is PFOA free.

(This is how they try to confuse the buyer. ALL non-stick pans are PFOA free!)

And:

The ceramic-titanium compound is applied to the inside cooking surface only, where it counts. The outside is painted with a "nonstick compound" for easy cleaning. Do not use metal scouring pads or similar on this outside, they would leave marks!

DO NOT BUY SCANPAN.

My advice above stands: Buy cheap teflon cookware and replace it more often.

Our friend who works in the cooking store where we got ours has the same one we got and he said they use it just about every day. It goes in the dishwasher, oven (maybe under the broiler too?) and works beautifully. He loves his and would have told me to stay away from it if he felt otherwise about his.

We really only use a NS pan to make DH some scrambled eggs on the weekend, the rare omelette, or even rarer dish or recipe calling for a NS pan, so I anticipate it should hold up okay under such minimal use in our household.

(I don't think the Bud WI review of a Scanpan from the eighties (20 years ago!) is a valid review. People should chime in who have bought them recently.)

There you go--fill up our landfills up with expensive throwaways, not with cheap ones!

When you heat PTFE beyond a certain temperature, it starts to break down. That's the nature of the material. It doesn't matter if the pan is a $10 T-FAL or a $200 All Clad, PTFE is PTFE. Once you overheat the pan, it's on its way to becoming landfill fodder. There is currently no way to make "higher-quality" PTFE that doesn't break down. Just as water boils at 212 F, so PTFE breaks down at its breakdown temperature.

So get the cheap pan, because you're going to be throwing it away in a few years. It doesn't matter how much you pay for it.

(Exception: The Demeyere Controlinduc pans on induction cooktops are a whole different ballgame. But that's a subject for a different thread.)

And Solar summed it pretty well: Don't fool yourself into thinking your $200 teflon pan is going to last any longer than my $10 pan. Same basic material, same basic properties.

I prefer the medium cheap 15-30 dollar variety that has a disc bottom for non-stick egg/pancake pan. No hot spots or warping. Macy's on sale.

Solar, I love those Demeyere pro-line frypans, I saw a 9.5 " "Atlantis" floor model with the silvinox for $111. at my local Sur la Table.

ScanPans haven't lasted longer than anything else for me. However, I do like the design of their 10" skillet...really works exceptionally well for me. I keep sending them back and they keep sending me new ones. Shipping still costs me 15-20 per event, but I keep doing it and they keep doing it.

No, that statement is just crazy...

I myself have a Scanpan fry pan, and think it's the best non-stick fry pan I have ever owned. Scanpan addresses head-on the whole PTFE thing on its website, which I've linked below. You can decide for yourself whether you think PTFE-containing pans are dangerous, but at least you'll know that other manufacturers, using titanium surfaces, also use PTFE, and may have worse manufacturing controls than the highly-regarded Scanpan. At least Scanpan is open and direct about it; those other manufacturers citing their titanium non-stick surfaces are suspect, given their obfuscation of the facts.

THE SURFACE
• Eurolux has the world’s first carbon fibre reinforced non stick surface.This Swiss made surface is internationally exclusive to Eurolux cookware. The natural carbon fibre with excellent non stick abilities is up to 10 times
stronger than steel and heat resistant up to 1200ºC.

THE PROCESS
• The titanium/ceramic surface is fused into the alloy base at 3000ºC.
• The carbon fibre, non stick surface is sintered into the titanium ceramic surface at 420ºC.
Features:
- dishwasher safe
- Swiss made surface
- super hard titanium ceramic surface
- scratch and corrosion resistant
- safe for metal spatulas
- High temperature resistant
- complies with food regulations
- exceptionally durable non stick surface

As you can see, the Eurolux can handle 1200C. PTFE can handle about 200 Deg. C before giving off deadly fumes. You'd be crazy to use a ScanPan PTFE coated pot. That's like adding poison to every dish you cook. Notice the Eurolux has no polymers.

Also, the Eurolux is made in Germany. ScanPan is made in China. So if the PTFE poison doesn't kill you, then probably you're getting lead contamination from their ScanPan pots.

Sure, Eurolux costs more than cheaply made and carcinogenic ScanPan, but is there really a pricetag on health? Now as far as performance is concerned, I've had my Eurolox frypan for about a week. I gave it the most difficult nonstick test. I cracked four sunnyside up eggs into the pot. Used a litte virgin olive oil to coat the pan. Cooked them for about 10 minutes. And then I leaned the pot over and the four eggs just slid out, yolk intact! No egg residue remained in the pot. The Eurolux, is really a great pot, healthy, safe, and not that heavy, like my Le Creuset Ceramic coated iron.

I think the Eurolux is the best. ScanPan is crap and hazardous to your health. The choice of which to use is easy! Don't you think?

It is the breakdown products of this PFC family that are the current public health concern. PTFE is just one member of that PFC family. Breakdown products are PFOA and the identical chemical C8 (meaning 8 carbons). The real question for Eurolux is not whether their pan has PTFE, but rather if the pan has any PFC family chemical, specifically those carbon fibres they refer to.

I enjoy using a non-stick pan, mostly for eggs and fish. But I will not overheat the pan nor cook dry at such temperatures that could cause the PFC chemical (regardless of manufacturer) to break down and emit fumes. I would do the same if I owned a Eurolux pan.

So Eurolux cookware surface is rated for 1200 Deg. C.
ScanPan pan surface is rated for 260 Deg. C at best. Higher than that it certainly kills the birds. If it kills the birds do you want to use it?

As you correctly point out, PTFE is a Flourocarbon: Poly Tetra Flouro Ethylene. Notice the Flourine molecule that's in PTFE. Eurolux doesn't use Flourine molecules. Hey, I think Flourine gas is a quick killer, too. And you should not drink Flouride water or use flouride containing toothpaste either. Flourides are known to cause cancer, too. If you want to find Flouride free toothpaste, just visit your neighborhood healthfood store, Whole Foods, etc.

Carbon is an element, no 12 on the Periodic table. Humans are made from carbon compounds. Diamonds are made from pure carbon depending on the crystal structure. Diamonds are the hardest substance and have the highest melting temperature. Nothing unhealthy about carbon. Lead is also made of carbon, and it's not healthy. But the temperature rating of the Eurolux tells you that the carbon fibers are not lead! However, many carbon containing polymeric compounds are deadly. PTFE/Teflon is known to cause cancer in rodents. Carbon doesn't cause cancer. We are made of carbon. Carbon is healthy. PTFE is a carcinogen. Eurolux is heat resistant to 1200 Deg. C. Scanpan fumes at around 200 deg. C, well below frying temperatures.

If you want to eat healthy, or remove at least one source of carcinogen in your life, stay far away from any PTFE pot or pan. Stay away from ScanPan carcinogenic PTFE pots and pans. Use something healthier.

If you don't want to spend the money (Eurolux is expensive), then use high quality stainless steel. Stainless steel is a healthy cooking surface, non carcinogenic, but the eggs won't slip off the pan. You will have to scrub for 10 minutes. But I'd rather scrub for ten minutes, get some exercise in the process, than get cancer with ScanPan. Wouldn't you?

Teflon trouble sticking to DuPont
Chemical used in coating may be making people sick
Agency claims company withheld evidence of concerns
(August 9, 2004)

DuPont's troubled chemical
C-8 is widespread in the environment. How did it get there, and should we be worried?

E.P.A. Says It Will Fine DuPont for Holding Back Test Results

Hearth & Home: Watched Pots
It's not just what you cook, it's what you cook in - by Elizabeth Larsen

Teflon linked to birth defects and illness

Teflon Chemicals are a Threat to Health - Dr. Mercola

Teflon questions and Eliminate the use of Teflon

Teflon linked to birth defects and illness; but is it safe to use in cooking?
Dupont is facing new charges from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that it concealed research showing that pregnant workers were passing on Teflon chemicals to their unborn children. The EPA has also accused Dupont of failing to report evidence that the chemicals used to manufacture Teflon had contaminated water supplies affecting 12,000 people in the local area. Many of those affected families are suing Dupont.

Teflon's sticky situation - By Chris Summers - BBC News Online
It's on saucepans, clothing, even buildings, but now Teflon - the famed non-stick chemical - is at the centre of a slippery controversy about cancer and birth defects.

DuPont has hidden harmful effects of Teflon for 50 years

U.S. Officials Accuse DuPont of Concealing Teflon Ingredient's Health Risk

Toxic Gore-tex
Skip the gory Gore-tex and wander winter wrapped in warm, green alternatives

Teflon Chemical in Drinking Water Costs DuPont $107 Million

More Troubles With Teflon Toxicity

Board: Teflon Cancer Risks Downplayed
By RANDALL CHASE - The Associated Press
Tuesday, June 28, 2005; 9:50 PM
DOVER, Del. -- A controversial chemical used by DuPont to make the nonstick substance Teflon poses more of a cancer risk than indicated in a draft assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency, an independent review board has found. The EPA stated earlier this year that its draft risk assessment of perfluorooctanoic acid and its salts found "suggestive evidence" of potential human carcinogenicity, based on animal studies. In a draft report released Monday, the majority of members on an EPA scientific advisory board that reviewed the agency's report concluded that PFOA, also known as C-8, is "likely" to be carcinogenic to humans, and that the EPA should conduct cancer risk assessments for a variety of tumors found in mice and rats.

Teflon firm faces fresh lawsuit
BBC News, 19 July 2005 - US chemicals giant DuPont is facing a lawsuit accusing the company of failing to warn consumers about the health hazards of Teflon non-stick coatings. Two Florida law firms said they were filing the suit on behalf of 14 people who bought and used Teflon cookware. DuPont denied the claims, stating its products were safe and has vowed to vigorously defend itself. Plaintiffs want DuPont to spend $5bn to replace million of people's pots and pans and to issue Teflon warnings. They also want a fund to be created for medical monitoring of people who bought Teflon products.

CONSUMERS BEWARE: TEFLON CAN GIVE YOU CANCER
After ignoring numerous warnings from independent scientists for years, the "nonstick" chemical used in Teflon has now officially been categorized as a "likely carcinogen" by the U.S. government's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA scientists found four different types of tumors in lab animals exposed to the chemical. The agency announced it plans to collect millions of dollars in fines from DuPont, the maker of Teflon, for concealing studies indicating related health and environmental risks for over two decades.

Teflon May Be Just The Tip Of the Iceberg...

DuPont Warned Long Ago About Teflon in Paper Products

DuPont Pays Heavy Price For Teflon Cover-Up
DuPont's cover-up over allegations it failed to reveal the dangers of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) -- the chemical used to make Teflon -- reached closure when the company and the EPA agreed to a settlement that could amount to more than $300 million in civil fines.

EPA Fines Dupont for Poisoning Consumers with Teflon Cookware
From: Environment News Service

That's enough information for anyone to stay far away from ScanPan carcinogenic pots and pans. It takes an intelligent person to admit they're wrong, but it takes even greater intelligence to change your ways. Throw away your carcinogenic Scanpan pots and pans. Buy healthy cookeware like Eurolux, Le Creuset, HealthCraft, etc. So you're wrong! At least you can start to live and eat healthy now!
Now you won't have to absorb any more PTFE into your body either through fumes or particles that are scraped off the ScanPan.

Good Luck, AkChicago.

I contacted Eurolux regarding the pan losing it's non-stick ability and the exploding lid

The pan was under half way through the two year warranty period
I forwarded the pan and paperwork issued to me at Garden Australia Show, Brisbane where it was purchased

Eurolux would only replace the pan if I paid half of the price of a new pan
So much for warranty!
The new pan does not work on my induction hotplate
On the Eurolux website, it says it's an induction pan
Most would assume that means 'induction' it would work on an induction hotplate, it doesn't

The new pan is also showing scratch marks even though I only use plastic utensils and it's only used occasionally
I can only use the Eurolux pan in the oven, minus the lid
I have no confidence in the lid after the last exploded over an expensive meal!
The new pan also retains residue/odours after cooking, even after many washes in hot soapy water and washed with microfibre cloths

A while ago I received an email from Eurolux telling me I must remove my post or further action would be taken
I have not defamed Eurolux in any way, just reported my experience with a Eurolux pan
I forwarded the email to Garden Web

Gilian