Sapere

By Iqra Sharjeel

Based on: Plastics matter in the food system

This perspective article highlights how plastics, while widely used across global food systems—from agriculture and aquaculture to packaging and distribution—pose serious environmental, health, and policy challenges. Despite their integral role in modern food production and supply chains, plastics are under-addressed in food systems policies and sustainability agendas

Pervasive Use of Plastics in Food Systems
Plastics are extensively integrated into every stage of global food systems, from production to consumption. In agriculture, fisheries, and aquaculture, they serve functions such as mulching, irrigation, seed encapsulation, and storage. These uses account for approximately 3.5% of global plastic consumption. Beyond the farm, the food and drink packaging industry—valued at $400–500 billion annually—represents up to 20% of all plastics ever produced. Plastics are praised for extending shelf life, facilitating long-distance transport, and reducing food waste. However, this reliance reflects a deeper structural dependence on plastics for economic and logistical efficiency.

Hidden Costs and Externalities
Despite their usefulness, plastics carry significant hidden costs. The majority are fossil fuel-based and contain thousands of chemicals, many of which are hazardous, persistent, or entirely untested. These chemicals can migrate into food and are associated with endocrine disruption and other adverse health effects. During and after use, plastics contaminate soil, water, and air, with agricultural plastics and packaging being key contributors to macro-, micro-, and nano-plastic (MNP) pollution. These pollutants not only degrade ecosystems but also enter the human body, raising serious concerns about long-term health impacts.

Lifecycle Impacts
Plastics generate environmental and social damage across their entire lifecycle. Their production emits significant greenhouse gases and exposes vulnerable communities to toxic emissions. Post-use, less than 10% of plastics are recycled; most are incinerated, landfilled, or improperly disposed of, especially in low-income regions. Plastics used in agriculture degrade quickly, spreading microplastics that harm soil health, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity. Even recycling is problematic, as it is resource-intensive and often reintroduces toxic substances. This inefficiency underscores that plastics, especially in food systems, were never designed for safe recovery or circularity.

Plastics Threaten Global Food Security
While plastics have supported food production in certain contexts—such as polytunnels in arid zones—they simultaneously threaten the long-term viability of food systems. Plastic pollution compromises soil quality, reduces biodiversity, and disrupts planetary processes vital to agriculture. Global plastic production is projected to triple by 2060 and is increasingly linked to climate change. Paradoxically, the use of plastics to adapt to climate impacts may further accelerate environmental degradation, creating a self-reinforcing cycle. Therefore, plastics are not a sustainable solution to future food challenges and must be critically reassessed.

5. Policy and Research Gaps
Despite mounting evidence, plastics remain marginalized in global food system agendas. High-profile initiatives like the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit and the 2024 Food System Economics Report gave scant attention to plastics. Tools such as the Food Systems Countdown Initiative and the Food Systems Dashboard do not include plastic-related indicators, even though plastics directly affect all pillars of food system sustainability. This oversight stems partly from fragmented and incomplete data, as well as disciplinary silos that hinder integrated research and monitoring. Without targeted metrics, plastics remain an invisible threat in policy and planning.

Call for Action
The authors propose a set of aspirational indicators to monitor the role and impact of plastics across food systems. These include tracking virgin and recycled plastics, identifying chemicals of concern, mapping land use related to plastics, and calculating environmental, economic, and health costs. They advocate for interdisciplinary research to fill critical data gaps, improve transparency, and support essential-use criteria that define which plastics are truly necessary. A harmonized evidence base would empower policymakers to identify viable, safer alternatives and promote a just transition away from harmful plastic dependencies.

Global Plastics Treaty Opportunity
The UN Global Plastics Treaty—under negotiation since 2022—is seen as a pivotal chance to embed plastic regulation within food system reform. Food is mentioned repeatedly in the treaty’s draft text, highlighting its centrality to the issue. Although industry influence poses risks of diluting the treaty’s effectiveness, the process has sparked some progress: over 3,000 companies have begun disclosing plastic usage, and the FAO is developing a voluntary code for sustainable agricultural plastics. However, the authors emphasize that the treaty must include independent scientific input, conflict-of-interest safeguards, and robust implementation mechanisms to be effective. They call on the food systems community to view plastics as a multiscale, systemic challenge requiring urgent and integrated solutions.