AGC Knew PFOA Killed Monkeys in 2000 — Meeting Minutes Reveal Decades of Delay
Investigation by Pippa Neill, ENDS Report (19 May 2026)
Meeting minutes obtained by ENDS Report reveal that AGC Chemicals Europe — through its UK representative David Farrar — was present at a secret industry meeting in 2000 where the company learned that PFOA had killed laboratory monkeys and could not be established as having any “no effect level” for safe exposure.
The company continued using and emitting PFOA at Thornton-Cleveleys for another 12 years.
The Kinfauns Castle Meeting (2000)
Representatives from 3M, DuPont, Clairiant, Daikin, Miteni, and David Farrar representing Asahi Glass gathered at Kinfauns Castle, a gothic castle in Scotland, to discuss the toxicity of PFOA.
Minutes obtained by ENDS show the group reviewing a primate study — funded by the chemical companies and co-authored by Farrar — in which monkeys were dosed with PFOA in a Wisconsin laboratory:
- One monkey (high dose) developed liver lesions, became “cold to touch”, stopped eating, and was sacrificed in moribund condition
- A second monkey (lower dose) suffered hind-limb paralysis, ataxia, and was also sacrificed
- Every monkey showed increased liver weight — a sign of toxicity
The meeting concluded the monkey’s “death should be considered as exposure-related.”
More critically: because all animals showed effects, no “no effect level” could be established — meaning no safe threshold could be determined.
Dr Tony Fletcher (LSHTM PFAS Expert)
“Not being able to derive a no-effect level meant that the group could not rule out that even at much lower exposures, there may still be adverse effects.”
“These companies were involved in the commissioning of this work and this work demonstrates that there is some toxicity associated with these chemicals to the monkeys… this is a sign of toxicity.”
“Given the demonstrated toxicity in these monkeys, the companies should have been making efforts to avoid or at least reduce exposure to their workers.”
What AGC Did Next
Despite this knowledge:
- AGFP (later AGC Chemicals Europe) continued PFOA emissions until 2012 — 12 years after the meeting
- Approximately 49 tonnes of PFOA were emitted to air from Thornton-Cleveleys over the site’s operational history
- The company never applied activated carbon scrubbing — technology available at the time that could have reduced emissions
- An anonymous consultant who worked at the plant gave the manager responsible the nickname “The Poisoner”
2002 Follow-Up: Atmospheric Transport
Minutes from a 2002 meeting (Farrar again present) show the companies discussing:
- PFOA being found “widespread in human blood”
- Whether “long-range atmospheric transport” could explain this
- That PFOA formed in the free troposphere could deposit “over thousands of kilometres”
Dr Patrick Byrne (Liverpool John Moores University):
“Commissioning or reviewing work on long-range transport pathways suggests an awareness that these substances could move well beyond the immediate vicinity… It is therefore notable that PFOA production continued until 2012, despite this apparent recognition of mobility and possible health implications.”
AGC Response
AGC Chemicals Europe told ENDS:
“AGFP and later AGC Chemicals Europe Ltd were not exclusive users of PFOA. These conversations were taking place right across the fluoropolymers industry globally.”
“The particular study was not commissioned by us, and not conducted in the UK. However, as a responsible company, AGC Group were members of a group of users of PFOA that were willing to contribute to the cost and oversight of the study.”
On continued emissions:
“The use of PFOA and the release of this substance through emissions were within the terms of our permit and also UK and EU laws and regulations in place at the time.”
Legal Context
- 3M and DuPont have paid billions in US settlements for PFAS pollution
- Miteni executives (Italy) received 141 years combined prison for aggravated water poisoning and environmental disaster
- Leigh Day is investigating a potential claim against AGC Chemicals Europe for Thornton-Cleveleys residents
Sarah Moore (Leigh Day partner):
“It is gravely concerning that AGC Chemicals Europe, while known as AGFP, seems to have had knowledge of the harmful effects of PFOA exposure from animal studies going as far back as the 1990s.”
Why This Matters
The Kinfauns Castle meeting establishes that:
- AGC had direct knowledge of PFOA toxicity via its own consultant (Farrar)
- AGC knew there was no safe threshold — no “no effect level” could be established
- AGC chose to continue for another 12 years
- Abatement was technically available — activated carbon scrubbing could have reduced emissions
- Emissions were legal only because PFOA wasn’t yet regulated — a regulatory gap, not scientific uncertainty
Source
Pippa Neill, “A Scottish castle, steel cages, and dead monkeys: Revealing the ties that bind them all to a UK chemicals firm” — ENDS Report, 19 May 2026
This article is part of Hillhouse Watch’s ongoing coverage of the PFAS contamination investigation in Thornton-Cleveleys.