Microplastics in Food Environment: Sources, Consequences and Control Strategies

Chapter 12

Authors

  • C Avantika National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management, Thanjavur, Thanjavur – 613 005, Tamil Nadu, India
  • CP Srinithi National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management, Thanjavur, Thanjavur – 613 005, Tamil Nadu, India
  • M Lavanya National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management, Thanjavur, Thanjavur – 613 005, Tamil Nadu, India
  • N Baskaran National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management, Thanjavur, Thanjavur – 613 005, Tamil Nadu, India
  • S Vignesh National Institute of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management, Thanjavur, Thanjavur – 613 005, Tamil Nadu, India

Keywords:

Microplastics, Human Health, Sources, Physical properties of MPs

Abstract

Increasing accumulation of microplastics in the environment and food are of significant concern. It is unavoidable for people to consume tainted food that contains MPs, which is dangerous for both food security and people’s health. This situation creates the need to focus on monitoring and eradicating MPs across the food supply chain. MPs can move across the food chain by trophic transfer, thus leading to bioaccumulation of contaminants. MPs occur in feed, raw food and in processed foods. MPs exist in various types, size and shape which affects their absorption and degree of hazard.  This review highlights the existence of MPs in food and explain its implications to food security and potential risks to human health.

References

Akhbarizadeh, R., Dobaradaran, S., Nabipour, I., Tajbakhsh, S., Darabi, A. H., & Spitz, J. (2020). Abundance, composition, and potential intake of microplastics in canned fish. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 160(August), 111633. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111633

Ali, T., Habib, A., Muskan, F., Mumtaz, S., & Shams, R. (2023). Health risks posed by microplastics in teabags; microplastic pollution; a truly global problem. International Journal of Surgery, Publish Ah, 515–516. https://doi.org/10.1097/js9.0000000000000055

Da Costa Filho, P. A., Andrey, D., Eriksen, B., Peixoto, R. P., Carreres, B. M., Ambühl, M. E., Descarrega, J. B., Dubascoux, S., Zbinden, P., Panchaud, A., & Poitevin, E. (2021). Detection and characterization of small-sized microplastics (≥ 5 µm) in milk products. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-03458-7

Danopoulos, E., Jenner, L., Twiddy, M., & Rotchell, J. M. (2020). Microplastic contamination of salt intended for human consumption: a systematic review and meta-analysis. SN Applied Sciences, 2(12), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-020-03749-0

Danopoulos, E., Twiddy, M., & Rotchell, J. M. (2020). Microplastic contamination of drinking water: A systematic review. PLoS ONE, 15(7 July), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0236838

De-la-Torre, G. E. (2020). Microplastics: an emerging threat to food security and human health. Journal of Food Science and Technology, 57(5), 1601–1608. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13197-019-04138-1

Dietz, K. J., & Herth, S. (2011). Plant nanotoxicology. Trends in Plant Science, 16(11), 582–589. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2011.08.003

Hantoro, I., Löhr, A. J., Van Belleghem, F. G. A. J., Widianarko, B., & Ragas, A. M. J. (2019). Microplastics in coastal areas and seafood: implications for food safety. In Food Additives and Contaminants – Part A Chemistry, Analysis, Control, Exposure and Risk Assessment (Vol. 36, Issue 5, pp. 674–711). Taylor and Francis Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1080/19440049.2019.1585581

Hernandez, L. M., Xu, E. G., Larsson, H. C. E., Tahara, R., Maisuria, V. B., & Tufenkji, N. (2019). Plastic Teabags Release Billions of Microparticles and Nanoparticles into Tea. Environmental Science and Technology, 53(21), 12300–12310. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b02540

Kirstein, I. V., Gomiero, A., & Vollertsen, J. (2021). Microplastic pollution in drinking water. Current Opinion in Toxicology, 28, 70–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cotox.2021.09.003

Koelmans, A. A., Mohamed Nor, N. H., Hermsen, E., Kooi, M., Mintenig, S. M., & De France, J. (2019). Microplastics in freshwaters and drinking water: Critical review and assessment of data quality. Water Research, 155, 410–422. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2019.02.054

Kosuth, M., Mason, S. A., & Wattenberg, E. V. (2018). Anthropogenic contamination of tap water, beer, and sea salt. PLoS ONE, 13(4), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0194970

Kwon, J. H., Kim, J. W., Pham, T. D., Tarafdar, A., Hong, S., Chun, S. H., Lee, S. H., Kang, D. Y., Kim, J. Y., Kim, S. Bin, & Jung, J. (2020). Microplastics in food: A review on analytical methods and challenges. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(18), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17186710

Lakind, J. S., Verner, M. A., Rogers, R. D., Goeden, H., Naiman, D. Q., Marchitti, S. A., Lehmann, G. M., Hines, E. P., & Fenton, S. E. (2022). Current Breast Milk PFAS Levels in the United States and Canada: After All This Time, Why Don’t We Know More? Environmental Health Perspectives, 130(2), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP10359

Lee, H., Kunz, A., Shim, W. J., & Walther, B. A. (2019). Microplastic contamination of table salts from Taiwan, including a global review. Scientific Reports, 9(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-46417-z

Lehmann, G. M., Lakind, J. S., Davis, M. H., Hines, E. P., Marchitti, S. A., Alcala, C., & Lorber, M. (2018). Environmental chemicals in breast milk and formula: Exposure and risk assessment implications. Environmental Health Perspectives, 126(9), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1953

Mercogliano, R., Avio, C. G., Regoli, F., Anastasio, A., Colavita, G., & Santonicola, S. (2020). Occurrence of microplastics in commercial seafood under the perspective of the human food chain. A review. In Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (Vol. 68, Issue 19, pp. 5296–5301). American Chemical Society. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.0c01209

Muhib, M. I., Uddin, M. K., Rahman, M. M., & Malafaia, G. (2023). Occurrence of microplastics in tap and bottled water, and food packaging: A narrative review on current knowledge. Science of the Total Environment, 865. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.161274

Nicole, W. (2021). Microplastics in seafood: How much are people eating? In Environmental Health Perspectives (Vol. 129, Issue 3). Public Health Services, US Dept of Health and Human Services. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP8936

Oliveri Conti, G., Ferrante, M., Banni, M., Favara, C., Nicolosi, I., Cristaldi, A., Fiore, M., & Zuccarello, P. (2020). Micro- and nano-plastics in edible fruit and vegetables. The first diet risks assessment for the general population. Environmental Research, 187(April), 109677. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.109677

Peixoto, D., Pinheiro, C., Amorim, J., Oliva-Teles, L., Guilhermino, L., & Vieira, M. N. (2019). Microplastic pollution in commercial salt for human consumption: A review. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 219(March), 161–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2019.02.018

Presence of microplastics and nanoplastics in food, with particular focus on seafood. (2016). EFSA Journal, 14(6). https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2016.4501

Ragusa, A., Notarstefano, V., Svelato, A., Belloni, A., Gioacchini, G., Blondeel, C., Zucchelli, E., De Luca, C., D’avino, S., Gulotta, A., Carnevali, O., & Giorgini, E. (2022). Raman Microspectroscopy Detection and Characterisation of Microplastics in Human Breastmilk. Polymers, 14(13), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14132700

Ragusa, A., Svelato, A., Santacroce, C., Catalano, P., Notarstefano, V., Carnevali, O., Papa, F., Rongioletti, M. C. A., Baiocco, F., Draghi, S., D’Amore, E., Rinaldo, D., Matta, M., & Giorgini, E. (2021). Plasticenta: First evidence of microplastics in human placenta. Environment International, 146, 106274. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2020.106274

Rajendran, K., Rajendiran, R., Sukitha Pasupathi, M., Begum Nazir Ahamed, S., Kalyanasundaram, P., & Kannan Velu, R. (2022). Authentication of Microplastic Accumulation in Customary Fruits and Vegetables. 1–12. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-1314420/v1

Semmouri, I., Vercauteren, M., Van Acker, E., Pequeur, E., Asselman, J., & Janssen, C. (2022). Presence of microplastics in drinking water from different freshwater sources in Flanders (Belgium), an urbanized region in Europe. International Journal of Food Contamination, 9(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40550-022-00091-8

Singh, S., Trushna, T., Kalyanasundaram, M., Tamhankar, A. J., & Diwan, V. (2022). Microplastics in drinking water: a macro issue. Water Supply, 22(5), 5650–5674. https://doi.org/10.2166/ws.2022.189

Song, Y. K., Hong, S. H., Jang, M., Han, G. M., Jung, S. W., & Shim, W. J. (2017). Combined Effects of UV Exposure Duration and Mechanical Abrasion on Microplastic Fragmentation by Polymer Type. Environmental Science and Technology, 51(8), 4368–4376. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6b06155

Tahir, A., Taba, P., Samawi, M. F., & Werorilangi, S. (2019). Microplastics in water, sediment and salts from traditional salt producing ponds. Global Journal of Environmental Science and Management, 5(4), 431–440. https://doi.org/10.22034/gjesm.2019.04.03

Thiele, C. J., Hudson, M. D., Russell, A. E., Saluveer, M., & Sidaoui-Haddad, G. (2021). Microplastics in fish and fishmeal: an emerging environmental challenge? Scientific Reports, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81499-8

Vidyasakar, A., Krishnakumar, S., Kumar, K. S., Neelavannan, K., Anbalagan, S., Kasilingam, K., Srinivasalu, S., Saravanan, P., Kamaraj, S., & Magesh, N. S. (2021). Microplastic contamination in edible sea salt from the largest salt-producing states of India. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 171(April), 112728. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112728

Xie, W., Chen, W., Tang, D., Tan, X., Yang, Y., Tan, L., & Tang, Q. (2023). Revealing the Inhibition of Tea Cultivar ‘Ziyan’ Root Growth Caused by High Nitrogen Based on Physiological, Metabolite, and Transcriptome Analyses. Agronomy, 13(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13040968

Xing, D., Hu, Y., Sun, B., Song, F., Pan, Y., Liu, S., & Zheng, P. (2023). Behavior, Characteristics and Sources of Microplastics in Tea. Horticulturae, 9(2), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.3390/horticulturae9020174

Xu, J. L., Lin, X., Hugelier, S., Herrero-Langreo, A., & Gowen, A. A. (2021). Spectral imaging for characterization and detection of plastic substances in branded teabags. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 418(June), 126328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.126328

Xue, J., Samaei, S. H. A., Chen, J., Doucet, A., & Ng, K. T. W. (2022). What have we known so far about microplastics in drinking water treatment? A timely review. Frontiers of Environmental Science and Engineering, 16(5). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-021-1492-5.

Yaranal, N. A., Subbiah, S., & Mohanty, K. (2021). Identification, extraction of microplastics from edible salts and its removal from contaminated seawater. Environmental Technology and Innovation, 21, 101253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eti.2020.101253.

Downloads

Published

04.12.2023

How to Cite

Microplastics in Food Environment: Sources, Consequences and Control Strategies: Chapter 12. (2023). International Journal of Agricultural and Life Sciences, 208-221. https://skyfox.co/ijals/index.php/als/article/view/114

Most read articles by the same author(s)