Warning for packaged food buyers: It may be contaminated with microplastics, new study finds
New research shows that ripping plastic packaging from food can cause it to be covered in microplastics.
Unwrapping plastic covering and packaging from our shopping goods could cover our food in microplastics, a worrying new scientific study says.
Peeling back the packaging of deli meat and cheese or opening cartons of orange juice can release tiny particles of plastic. Additionally, glass bottles and jars sealed with plastic-coated metal lids may also shed microscopic plastic fragments.
Microplastics are tiny polymer pieces that vary in size from under 5 millimetres (about 0.2 inches) down to 1 micrometer, which is 1/25,000th of an inch and 1,000th the average width of a human hair. Particles smaller than this are classified as nanoplastics and are measured in billionths of a meter. Because of their small size, microplastics can easily enter the environment and food chains, something that raises concern about their potential impact on health and ecosystems.
Lisa Zimmermann, lead author of the study published Tuesday in the journal NPJ Science of Food said that “This is the first systematic evidence of how normal and intended use of foodstuffs packaged in plastics can be contaminated with micro- and nanoplastics. We found food packaging is actually a direct source of the micro- and nanoplastics measured in food.”
“The research shows the number of microplastics increases with each bottle opening, so therefore we can say it’s the usage of the food contact article which leads to micro- and nanoplastic release,” she added.
How can I cut down on microplastics?
Speaking to CNN, Dr. Leonardo Trasande, director of environmental pediatrics at NYU Langone Health, told the outlet that one way to reduce our plastic footprint is “by using stainless steel and glass containers, when possible... Avoid microwaving food or beverages in plastic, including infant formula and pumped human milk, and don’t put plastic in the dishwasher, because the heat can cause chemicals to leak out."
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Mark Taylor, chief environmental scientist at the Environmental Protection Authority in the Australian state of Victoria, told The Guardian that "regular vacuuming is really effective at reducing the load" of microplastics in your home, adding that if not, they form “deposits in open water vessels, on your fruit, on people’s hands, kitchen utensils.”
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