A Texas subpoena is asking Lululemon to prove what it's been marketing
On April 13, 2026, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a Civil Investigative Demand to Lululemon USA Inc., opening a formal investigation into whether the activewear company misled consumers about the presence of PFAS — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — in its products. The investigation will examine Lululemon's restricted substances list, testing protocols, and supply chain practices to determine whether the company's apparel meets the safety standards it has publicly claimed.
Paxton's office framed the issue as consumer deception, not just a chemical safety question. "I will not allow any corporation to sell harmful, toxic materials to consumers at a premium price under the guise of wellness and sustainability," Paxton stated. "If Lululemon has violated Texas law, it will be held accountable."
Lululemon reported nearly $10.6 billion revenue in fiscal year 2025 and has long marketed itself as a premium, wellness-oriented brand. The company responded that it does not use PFAS in its products and phased out the substance in FY23, where it had been used in a small percentage of its assortment for durable water repellency. It confirmed it is cooperating with the investigation.
PFAS aren't a new concern — they've been detected in activewear for years
A Civil Investigative Demand doesn't come without prior evidence of a problem. Independent testing in 2021 detected 32 parts per million of fluorine in Lululemon athletic pants at an EPA-certified laboratory. While fluorine detection alone doesn't confirm specific PFAS compounds, it is the primary indicator used to screen for them. A separate investigation testing 32 pieces of activewear found that 25% had detectable organic fluorine levels ranging from 10 to 284 ppm — Lululemon was among the brands identified.
A Toxic-Free Future study testing 60 textile products found 35 contained fluorine above 100 ppm, and 75% of those contained long-chain PFAS compounds that have been banned in the EU and phased out in the U.S. In March 2023, the Center for Environmental Health filed legal paperwork in California against Lululemon over the same concern.
Lululemon's defense — that it phased out PFAS in FY23 — doesn't address whether they were present before that, at what levels, in which products, and for how long.
"Forever chemicals" aren't called that because they go away
PFAS are a class of more than more than 14,000 synthetic chemical compounds used to create water-, stain-, and heat-resistant coatings in clothing, cookware, food packaging, and industrial applications. They accumulate in the body and in the environment because they don't break down.
In 2023, the International Agency for Research on Cancer upgraded PFOA — one of the most studied PFAS compounds — from a "possible" to a confirmed Group 1 human carcinogen. PFOS was classified as a possible human carcinogen the same year. A peer-reviewed study published in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology in 2025 estimated that PFAS exposure through drinking water alone accounts for 4,600 to 6,800 new cancer cases in the U.S. annually — with associations across digestive, endocrine, respiratory, thyroid, and soft tissue cancers (PMID: 39789195). The National Cancer Institute maintains an active research program specifically on PFAS exposure and cancer risk.
The specific exposure pathway through clothing is less studied than through water and food — but it isn't zero. Skin absorption, hand-to-mouth contact, and off-gassing during high-heat athletic activity are all plausible routes. The question isn't whether PFAS exposure is harmful. It's whether exposure from activewear adds meaningfully to a cumulative load that's already above safe thresholds for most Americans.
What this means for your wardrobe
The Animal Base vetting has always been about inputs — what you put in and on your body. Activewear is direct skin contact, often during elevated body temperature and increased sweat, which raises absorption potential. "Phased out by FY23" is not the same as "never present." If you own Lululemon products manufactured before 2023, particularly anything marketed as water- or stain-resistant, the question is worth asking.
The broader issue is structural: PFAS end up in athletic wear because performance coatings require them, and performance coatings sell product. The wellness branding is downstream of the manufacturing decision, not the other way around. A brand marketing itself around your health while using compounds linked to cancer is a contradiction worth tracking — regardless of how the Texas investigation resolves.