Safest Disposable Paper Plates — Buying Guide

Are you looking for the safest and healthiest paper plates that avoid harmful chemicals for your family? Mamavation received donations from community members of all the paper plates they are using, and we sent them off to an EPA-certified laboratory for testing of indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.” You’ve trusted Mamavation to bring you consumer studies like safest parchment paper, safest paper towels, and safest toilet paper, join us for a consumer study on the safest paper plates for everyday use.

Disclosure: This consumer study is released in partnership with Environmental Health News. Donations were provided by Environmental Health News and Mamavation community members. 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!  Copyright © 2026 Mamavation — All Rights Reserved

Mamavation Finds Indications of PFAS in Paper Plates

Where can you find the most eco-friendly paper plates that represent the most responsible option or sustainable option? The environmental impact of a product may not be as obvious as we previously thought because many compostables we found contained indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.”

PFAS “forever chemicals” are per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances used as stain-resistant, water-resistant, & oil-resistant chemicals in commerce. They have been used for decades inside consumer products, manufacturing, and building materials. There are over 15,000 chemicals in the PFAS class (including PFOA & PTFE), and because there are so many, they are incredibly hard to identify and test for. The biggest problem with PFAS is their staying power–they do not leave the environment or our bodies for many, many years, which is the reason they are dubbed “forever chemicals.”

Mamavation sent 11 single-use paper plates to an EPA-certified laboratory to test for organic fluorine, which is a marker for PFAS “forever chemical” compounds.

Here are the main findings from Mamavation’s paper plates PFAS Consumer Study:

• 27% of paper plates tested at Mamavation’s EPA-certified lab had indications of PFAS “forever chemicals”, while 73% of paper plates tested did not. In other words, 3 out of 11 products contained indications of PFAS “forever chemicals.”
• According to our lab, levels of organic fluorine, a marker for PFAS, were found between 14 parts per million (ppm) to 563 parts per million (ppm).

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. Many of these PFAS chemicals can persist in our bodies for years or decades. The health effects of PFAS exposure on the skin, particularly in sensitive areas such as breast tissue, are unknown. It’s also unknown what happens when it is absorbed into our tissues and travels around in our bodies. However, we do know that these areas can be vulnerable to toxic chemicals like PFAS “forever chemicals.” Therefore, it’s imperative to reduce the amount of PFAS you are exposed to from food, water, and consumer products. Mamavation is dedicated to helping you do that when you are shopping for paper plates.

Here are some of the health effects of different PFAS “forever chemicals.”

• Reduction in immunity
• Reduced vaccination response
• Increased risk of allergies & asthma in young children
• Affected growth, learning, and behavior of infants and older children
• Increase cholesterol levels
• Metabolic diseases like obesity & diabetes
• Cardiovascular disease
• Lowered a woman’s chance of getting pregnant
• Lowered male fertility
• Increased risk of kidney & testicular cancers
• Causes endocrine disruption
• Disrupted normal thyroid function
• Increases risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children 

It’s also very clear based on biomonitoring evidence from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) that PFAS are in all Americans. Therefore, these exposures can harm most Americans.

Other Categories of Products Mamavation Has Tested for Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

Before we launch into the raw data from our lab, we wanted to remind you about all the other studies we have done on indications of PFAS “forever chemicals” inside the food and consumer products you may bring inside your home. Each one of these studies were done in a similar fashion as this study with brands sent independently to the lab and raw data of those labs at the bottom of the post.

• Deodorants
• Nursing Bras
• Activewear (Yoga Pants)
• Sports Bras
• Dental Floss
• Toilet Paper
• Period Underwear
• Tampons
• Sanitary Pads, Pantiliners, & Incontinence Pads
• Soft Contact Lenses
• Green Beauty Makeup
• Lip Balm
• Condoms & Lubricants
• Powdered Electrolytes
• Butter Wrappers
• Pasta & Tomato Sauces
• Nut Butters (Peanut butter, etc.)
• Ketchup
• Parchment Paper
• Paper Towels
• Cupcake Liners
• Plastic-Free Straws
• Fast Food Packaging
• Children’s Probiotics
• Kids’ Backpacks
• Baby Strollers

All additional consumer studies are posted here.

Mamavation’s Investigation of Paper Plates & Indications of PFAS “Forever Chemicals”

Paper plate products were donated in late 2025. For this consumer study, most products were purchased by community members and sent to us in original packaging.

Testing: Mamavation’s EPA-certified laboratory uses marker testing to identify the potential presence of PFAS “forever chemicals” in paper plates. Organic fluorine is a marker for PFAS because all PFAS chemicals are carbon-based compounds that contain fluorine. The specific lab method used to test for total fluorine was the Determination of Total Fluorine by Oxygen Flask Combustion and Ion-Selective Electrode. If total fluorine was observed at a detection level of 10 ppm or greater, the lab did the Determination of free Fluoride Ion in the product by Ion-Selective Electrode and then subtracted that from the Total Fluorine to determine the amount of organic fluorine. This marker testing is likely to show the presence of PFAS. Organic fluorine can also capture other fluoropolymers, pharmaceuticals, and common hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants, such as 1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane (commonly known as R-134a) and 2,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene (commonly known as HFO-1234yf), which are all also PFAS.

Product Brands We Tested
To help our community make safer choices, Mamavation sent a wide range of popular paper plates to our EPA-certified laboratory for organic fluorine testing.

Below is the complete list of paper plates included in our investigation.

Paper Plate Products Tested by Mamavation

• Better Earth Farmer’s Fiber Plates 9″
• Chinet Classic White Dinner Plates 10 3/8″
• Dixie Ultra Paper Plates 10 1/16″
• EcoSoul Tree Free Compostable Plates Round 9″
• Everspring (Target) Sugarcane Plates 10″
• Joyborn 100% Compostable Paper Plates 10″
• Matter Compostable Natural Fiber Plates 9″
• Natural Value Heavy Duty Recycled Paper Plates 9″
• Repurpose Heavy Duty Compostable Plates 9″
• Up & Up (Target) Heavy Duty Paper Plates
• World Centric Compostable Plates 9″ 

Want full access to the raw data, organic fluorine levels, and our recommendations for the paper plate products? Join MAMAGATE and get free access to the complete buying guide below, with detailed lab results for every product. Access below.