GreenPan Class Action Says Non-Stick Pans Contain Toxins

A class action lawsuit claims that The Cookware Company advertises its non-stick GreenPans as being “completely toxin free,” when they actually emit toxins.

Plaintiff Anna Saldivar states that the GreenPans are also falsely advertised as being “healthy ceramic non-stick,” and containing “no PFO, PFAS, lead or cadmium.”

However, “GreenPan Products are not, in fact, ‘COMPLETELY TOXIN FREE!’, but contain compounds that are known to be toxic,” contends the GreenPan class action lawsuit. “Upon information and belief, the patent for ‘Thermolon™’ coating, which is applied to every GreenPan Product, contains several known toxins.”

According to the GreenPan class action, GreenPans contain several known toxins; silane, aluminum oxide, tetraethoxysilane, methyltrimethoxysilane, and potassium titanate. These substances, says the plaintiff, are known to cause health problems.

The Cookware Company makes several other false claims about its line of GreenPan cookware, according to the plaintiff. One allegedly dubious claim is that the food prepared in a GreenPan is “healthier” than food prepared in other pans.

Additionally, the manufacturer allegedly states that the pans themselves are “environmentally friendly” and are “reinforced” with diamonds.

“GreenPan’s Products are not ‘good for the environment’ solely because GreenPan’s manufacturing process creates a lower amount of harmful gasses than GreenPan’s competitors,” alleges the GreenPan class action lawsuit. “GreenPan’s Products are not ‘reinforced . . . with diamonds,’ nor do they contain material amounts of diamonds or diamond fragments.”

According to the GreenPan class action lawsuit, Saldivar purchased new GreenPan products in 2017 based on information on the products’ packaging and the GreenPan website.

Saldivar says that she and other consumers would not have paid as much for their GreenPan products had they known that sale of the pans were based on false advertising claims.

“GreenPan markets its Products to the health-conscious consumer,” states the class action lawsuit. “GreenPan’s consumer cares about the consumer’s health and the health of the consumer’s family. As a result, the GreenPan consumer pays a premium for GreenPan’s nonstick Product; in fact, GreenPan’s Products sell for an approximate 50% to 400% higher price than other nonstick cookware.”

GreenPan, according to the class action lawsuit, debuted in 2007 after the founders supposedly discovered that the coating traditional non-stick cookware released toxins when heated. GreenPan utilizes Thermolon™, a “ceramic non-stick coating,” according to the complaint. However, no one has established the safety of this material, notes the plaintiff.

In 2012, notes the class action lawsuit, the makers of GreenPan were warned by the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus to tone down its health and environmental claims about the product. However, it appears that GreenPan did not heed those warnings.

The plaintiff is seeking to represent those who purchased GreenPan products in California within the past four years.

The GreenPan class action lawsuit is seeking damages for the plaintiff and the Class Members, as well as a court order requiring the Cookware Company to disgorge any profit it has made from the GreenPan line.

Do you own a GreenPan? Tell us about your experience in the comment section below! 

The plaintiff is represented by Trenton R. Kashima and Jeffrey R. Krinsk of Finkelstein & Krinsk LLP, Rod M. Johnston of Sommers Schwartz PC, and Timothy Becker, Jennell K. Shannon, and Molly E. Nephew of Johnson Becker PLLC.

The GreenPan Toxins Class Action Lawsuit is Anna Saldivar v. The Cookware Company LLC, Case No. 5:19-cv-06014, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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