Chomping Down on Microplastics

“The world is waking up” to the damage of plastics according to beloved David Attenborough. But how many people are aware of the fact that we, on average, consume thousands of tiny bits of plastic every year. Quite a shocking thought and something many people have likely not thought to be a consequence of plastic use. Tiny microplastics are everywhere, they are at the bottom of the sea, in the air we breathe and also in the food we eat and, according to a recent study we are consuming anywhere from 39,000 to 52,000 microplastics a year. Some of which is coming from our daily food intake. But the scientific community is only scratching the surface on how much plastic we are consuming.

What foods are affected?

Fruit and Veg 

Researchers at the University of Catania, Italy discovered microplastics in fruit and vegetables. These included apples, pears, carrots and lettuce. Apples had the worst plastic count found in them with an average of 195,500 particles per gram. Whereas carrots and broccoli were the worst found vegetables averaging with more than 100,000 particles per gram. 

Fish 

Most people will now be aware of the plastic problems in our oceans. And because of this, fish is also a food highly contaminated with plastics. Many species of fish feed on plankton and they often mistake small microplastics as their usual meal. This is mainly an issue when consuming shellfish, as they are consumed whole, meaning humans are consuming the plastic left in their digestive system. Plastics can be contaminated with bacteria which is then absorbed by the fish. Meaning that consuming other fish like tuna, could mean consuming high amounts of bacteria.

Salt 

Hong Kong’s consumer council have found microplastics in 20% of tested samples in April 2020 with 114 to 17,200 milligrams being found per kilogram tested. Some of the tested samples were showing microplastics deriving from disposable Polypropylene (PP) packaging.  

Not food but... Water. 

Possibly the most concerning of them all, microplastics have now been found in our drinking water. A recent study finding plastic particles in 80% of samples tested with an average of 4.34 plastic particles per litre of water. 

How has this happened? 

There are many possible ways in which these foods have come to contain microplastics. Microplastics have been found to be penetrating the roots of lettuce and wheat plants, and nanoplastics were absorbed by plant roots. Fruit and vegetables can also be contaminated through the uptake from microplastic-contaminated water and soil. Whereas microplastics are entering the oceans to contaminate our fish, salt and drinking water in many ways. One big way microplastics enter the ocean is through the washing of clothing, with washing machines releasing, on average, between 700 thousand to six million fibres per load. Plastic packaging is another culprit, shedding microplastics onto our food. 

Realistically, this is just a small taster of the different ways in which we are likely consuming plastics daily. The health risks of humans consuming plastics is still relatively unknown and scientists are still unsure as to the amount of microplastics our bodies can tolerate. A study undertaken by Kings College in London hypothesized that, over time, the effect of consuming plastics could be toxic. Whilst researchers from John Hopkins also found that consuming plastics could damage the immune system and unbalance the gut.

If you are company working on plastic solutions so that we can combat this ongoing issue, we want to hear your story. Get in touch.