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Microplastic and Nanoplastic in Crops: Possible Adverse Effects to Crop Production and Contaminant Transfer in the Food Chain
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This meta-analysis found that nanoplastics can be taken up by plant roots and transferred to the parts we eat, while also reducing crop yields. This means microplastic pollution in agricultural soil could affect both food safety and food production, creating a dual concern for human health.
With the increasing amounts of microplastic (MP) deposited in soil from various agricultural activities, crop plants can become an important source of MP in food products. The last three years of studies gave enough evidence showing that plastic in the form of nanoparticles (<100 nm) can be taken up by the root system and transferred to aboveground plant parts. Furthermore, the presence of microplastic in soil affects plant growth disturbing metabolic processes in plants, thus reducing yields and crop quality. Some of the adverse effects of microplastic on plants have been already described in the meta-analysis; however, this review provides a comprehensive overview of the latest findings about possible adverse effects and risks related to wide microplastic occurrence in soil on crop production safety, including topics related to changes of pesticides behavior and plant pathogen spreading under the presence MP and possibly threaten to human health.
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This meta-analysis pooled data from multiple studies to examine how micro- and nanoplastics affect plants. It found that nanoplastics (smaller than 100 nm) are generally more harmful to plant growth and development than larger microplastics, though staple crops showed surprisingly little effect. Since plants can absorb these tiny plastic particles, the findings raise questions about whether microplastics in soil could enter the food supply.
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