Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has opened an investigation into Hanes and Fruit of the Loom over the potential presence of toxic chemicals in materials used to make children\u2019s underwear, putting two of the country\u2019s best-known clothing brands under scrutiny over products designed for prolonged contact with children\u2019s skin.<\/p>\n
Paxton\u2019s office announced the investigation on October 6, 2026, and issued civil investigative demands to both companies seeking information about their products, materials and manufacturing practices as Texas examines possible violations of state consumer protection lawconsumer protection lawConsumer protection law is the body of federal and state laws designed to protect people from unfair, deceptive, fraudulent, or abusive practices in the marketplace. These laws regulate areas such as advertising, sales, lending, debt collection, credit reporting, warranties, financial services, and consumer products.Read more \u2192<\/a>.<\/p>\n The state has identified no specific Hanes or Fruit of the Loom product as unsafe and has released no testing showing toxic chemicals in underwear sold by either company. The investigation instead seeks to determine what materials and substances are used in the products and whether the companies\u2019 practices comply with Texas law.<\/p>\n Paxton\u2019s office said the inquiry is focused in part on synthetic materials such as polyester, rayon and spandex. The state pointed to the clothing industry\u2019s increased reliance on lower-cost synthetic fabrics, which can involve plastic-derived materials and chemical-intensive manufacturing processes.<\/p>\n Investigators are also looking at chemicals associated with textile production, including bisphenols, phthalates, PFAS, parabens and fluorine. The attorney general\u2019s office cited research associating some of those substances with endocrine disruption, infertility, cancer and other health concerns, as well as questions about possible exposure through prolonged skin contact.<\/p>\n Synthetic fabrics can also shed microplastics, another issue cited by Paxton\u2019s office as it examines materials used in children\u2019s undergarments.<\/p>\n \u201cWe must protect our children who cannot yet protect themselves,\u201d Paxton said in announcing the investigation, adding that his office would examine major children\u2019s clothing brands to determine whether their products contain harmful materials.<\/p>\n Under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act, investigators can use the demands to seek documents relevant to a possible violation. The records could help Paxton\u2019s office determine whether the companies\u2019 products, representations or manufacturing practices warrant further action.<\/p>\n Hanes is owned by Gildan Activewear, which said it plans to cooperate with the investigation. The company said its manufacturing and sourcing standards are designed to comply with requirements governing harmful chemicals and that product safety and quality remain priorities.<\/p>\n Fruit of the Loom, owned by Berkshire Hathaway, had not publicly addressed the substance of the investigation as of Tuesday.<\/p>\n The inquiry follows another Texas investigation into chemicals in clothing. In April, Paxton\u2019s office issued a civil investigative demand to Lululemon over the possible presence of PFAS, commonly known as \u201cforever chemicals,\u201d in its apparel.<\/p>\n That investigation sought information about Lululemon\u2019s restricted substances list, product testing, and supply chain practices as Texas examined whether the company\u2019s products matched its representations about safety, wellness, and sustainability.<\/p>\n The latest inquiry brings that scrutiny into children\u2019s clothing, where questions about exposure carry added weight because underwear can remain in direct contact with the skin for extended periods.<\/p>\n Paxton\u2019s office has not disclosed whether it plans independent testing of Hanes or Fruit of the Loom products or when the investigation may be completed. The records obtained through the civil investigative demands will help determine whether the state moves toward enforcement or closes the inquiry without further action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has opened an investigation into Hanes and Fruit of the Loom over the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":458800,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":["post-458799","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458799","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=458799"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458799\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/458800"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=458799"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=458799"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=458799"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}