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Emerging Issues in Food Waste Management: Plastic Contamination
Citation:
Kenny, S. Emerging Issues in Food Waste Management: Plastic Contamination. U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development, Washington, DC, 2021.
Impact/Purpose:
Synthesize the latest science regarding the impacts of plastics contamination (including microplastics) in food waste streams on food waste recycling, human health, and the environment; and the most effective strategies to prevent or mitigate the contamination.
Description:
Wasted food is a major global environmental, social, and economic challenge. To reduce the environmental impact of food waste, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) encourages composting and anaerobic digestion, among other strategies, in lieu of landfilling and incineration. However, stakeholders have expressed concerns about the levels of plastic contamination in food waste streams, noting that it can complicate recycling and reduce the quality, value, and potentially safety of soil amendments. This paper synthesizes available literature to determine the nature and magnitude of the problem and the effectiveness of possible solutions. The review finds evidence of plastic (including microplastic) contamination in food waste streams (from food and food packaging and serviceware) and in soil amendments made from food waste, but much remains uncharacterized about the environmental fate of and exposure to plastic particles when applied to land. The review also finds evidence of complications in processing (e.g., reduced methane generation) due to plastic contamination, reducing the desirability of food waste as feedstock. There is no substantial evidence of environmental or human health effects occurring as a result of plastic contamination in soil amendments made from food waste; however, there are questions and concerns regarding the release of microplastics into the environment as a consequence of the grinding, shredding, or de-packaging that occurs at processing facilities and the breakdown of larger plastic fragments in the soil over time. Regardless of risks to human health and the environment, the presence of visible plastic particles in soil amendments reduces their value and marketability. Additional research is needed to characterize the levels of plastic (including microplastic and nanoplastic) contamination in soil amendments made from food waste relative to levels in background soils, biosolids, and synthetic fertilizers; to measure relative effectiveness of prevention and mitigation strategies; and to assess potential risks to human health and the environment from land application of plastic-contaminated compost and soil amendments.
URLs/Downloads:
EMERGING ISSUES IN FOOD WASTE MANAGEMENT PLASTIC CONTAMINATION.PDF (PDF, NA pp, 2702.101 KB, about PDF)https://www.epa.gov/land-research/food-waste-research