A judge has thrown out a cookware industry lawsuit trying to stop Minnesota's ban on forever chemicals.

In a ruling earlier this month, the judge dismissed the suit by the Cookware Sustainability Alliance, which was filed days after the ban took effect in January.

The group claimed the ban on PFAS "discriminates against out-of-state commerce." The judge ruled the law applies equally to cookware makers in Minnesota and across the country.

"It is true that ... the law effectively only bans products manufactured outside Minnesota. But that is an effect on particular out-of-state businesses, not a structural effect on interstate commerce," the judge wrote. "That the burden now falls only on manufacturers that currently are headquartered elsewhere is inconsequential. By passing the Statute, the Minnesota Legislature did not give any structural 'competitive advantage' to in-state industry."

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been found in the drinking water of some Minnesota communities, and they have been linked to health problems, including cancer.

As of Jan. 1, Amara's Law bans these chemicals that are found in 11 types of everyday consumer products. Those include cookware, cosmetics, cleaning products and more. The law was named after Amara Strande, a young woman who spent her final months advocating for the bill. She died of cancer in April 2023.

WCCO Investigates has reported extensively on Minnesota's PFAS problems.