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Tracing source of microplastics contamination in CTC tea: Effect of processing stages and human health risk assessment

Journal of Hazardous Materials 2025 2 citations ? Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count. Score: 58 ? 0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.

Riashree Mondal, Riashree Mondal, Riashree Mondal, Riashree Mondal, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Riashree Mondal, Riashree Mondal, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Subarna Bhattacharyya, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Subarna Bhattacharyya, Punarbasu Chaudhuri Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Punarbasu Chaudhuri Subarna Bhattacharyya, Subarna Bhattacharyya, Punarbasu Chaudhuri Punarbasu Chaudhuri Punarbasu Chaudhuri Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Subarna Bhattacharyya, Punarbasu Chaudhuri Punarbasu Chaudhuri Punarbasu Chaudhuri Basanta Kumar Das, Subarna Bhattacharyya, Dhruba Jyoti Sarkar, Basanta Kumar Das, Punarbasu Chaudhuri Subarna Bhattacharyya, Punarbasu Chaudhuri Punarbasu Chaudhuri

Summary

Researchers traced microplastic contamination through each stage of CTC tea manufacturing and found that processing equipment made of plastic, including conveyor belts and extraction machines, contributes particles throughout production. Contamination was highest during the fermentation stage and included polyethylene, polyacrylates, PVC, and nylon fragments. While the estimated health risks from consuming the tea fell within current safety limits, the study provides the first baseline data on how tea processing itself introduces microplastics.

Polymers

PE PVC nylon

Globally, tea is a widely consumed beverage and is reported to be contaminated with microplastics (MPs), especially in tea bags. However, data is lacking in CTC ('crush, tear, curl') tea with a possible source appointment. Present study investigated abundance of MPs at different stages of CTC tea manufacturing process. MPs (10-82.4 μm) contamination was found highest at fermentation stage (1.1 particles g) and lowest at drying stage (0.4 particles g), with prevalence of polyethylene, polyacrylates, polyvinyl chloride, and nylon. Plucking, cutting & rolling stages were associated with a higher abundance of fibrous and fragmented MPs. Further, tea processing equipment made of plastics, viz., withering trough, conveyor belt, fiber extractor machine, etc., contributes to MPs contamination in CTC tea. EDI for CTC tea and brewed tea were 0.03-0.2 and 0.05-0.28 particles kg BW day, respectively. Estimated average rate of MPs ingested (ARMI) was 6.19-73.9 μg person year. Non-cancer (HQ) and cancer risk (ILCR) indices ranged from 1.53 × 10 to 5.44 × 10 and 1.45 × 10 to 2.59 × 10, respectively, which are within safety limits. The study generates baseline data for MPs contamination in processing stages of CTC tea and health risk associated with it.

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