Charger Blogger Explores How Microplastics Impact Our Food

Steak. Hamburgers. Pulled pork. Hot dogs. Kielbasa. Bratwurst. Filet Mignon. Chili. Beef Wellington. Wagyu.

I think it’s safe to say that the world likes its meat. For my own self, my order is typically one of the following:

1. Pulled pork w/ mac n’ cheese + a criminally offensive amount of ketchup
2. Burger, specifically with the following:
• Medium-rare angus beef, caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, American cheese or gorgonzola, tomato, bibb lettuce, + classic bun

For a retired vegan, I think that I have some pretty good expectations for how I enjoy the meatier side of the menu. At the same time, I am aware of the impacts meat and dairy production have on the Earth, which has in turn made me increasingly mindful over the past couple of months of my meat consumption. Granted, I’m a college student, but I do what I can.

In the past couple of weeks, after explaining my research to one of my favorite professors – James Ayers – it was brought to my attention that there is not only a correlation of microplastics in fish, but in meat as well. Knowing myself, I had to know more. So...

Why Does Meat Matter?

Meat has been around forever. I’m meat. You’re meat. We’re just a bunch of meatsuits walking around listening to music and eating pizza. Us humans have been consuming animals ever since we “happened” in the evolutionary timeline of species. However, ever since we started to get into animal agriculture and processing our food to the point of asking, “Is this really food?,” I think there comes a point where it can be agreed that evolution didn’t quite plan for our rapid intellectual evolution.

Plastic is a synthetic material created from polymers that can be molded to suit a variety of uses. It can be found in plastic-based cups, utensils, food bins, Saran wrap, toys – it’s quite literally everywhere. Originally, most of these products were either paper, glass, or metal-based, but due to the ease and low manufacturing price of plastic, well... the human race did what it does best: we got lazy. See, between “1950 and 2015, 7,800 million tons of plastic were produced, half of which between 2002 and 2015” (Kedzierski et al.). I don’t know about you, but that’s a lot of plastic. According to a study done in April of this year, not only will 200 million tons of plastic waste be created, but 70 million tons of that plastic will end up in nature (“Plastic Overshoot Day: Report 2024”). That’s not... great. That’s 70 million tons of garbage ending up in our oceans, forests, streams, deserts, and any ecosystem that humanity brushes their fingers across. While I can admit that there are many eco-friendly options on the market for clothing, food containers, disposable utensils, better toilet paper, etc., a lot of these products are typically sold for a higher price, turning off consumption. This also doesn’t change the fact that there’s a lot of plastic contamination all over the place. Apparently, a “study carried out on honey and sugar coming from different countries revealed contamination by fibres and fragments” (Kedzierski et al.). This had stemmed from the use of plastic bags by beekeepers to supply sugar to their bees and other pollinators that might’ve gotten the opportunity to munch on that glucose.

But, Beatrice, you say, “How does this relate to meat?

“Well, my dear reader, you’ll find that in nature, everything relates to everything one way or another.”

Cow = meat. That’s the basic premise of it. There are other sources of animal meat, but we’re going to focus on cows. What do those cattle eat? Grass? Corn? Most agricultural cattle are fed corn from Somewhere, USA. My guess is corn-filled plastic bags from a crop field in America designated to supply livestock. Not good. What are these cows drinking? Water? How regulated is that water? Is it looked at by the animal-equivalent of the FDA?

Chances are, probably not. And that’s where the problem is.

As said by Maria Westerbos, director of the Plastic Soup Foundation, “...almost every steak and burger contains small pieces of plastic” (Bosch). Evidently, it’s not only your onion ring that’s crunchy, but the little particles in your favorite angus patty, too. Granted, the concentration of these particles per meat product will vary – there’s bound to be some products with 0% microplastics out there somewhere – but for the most part, they are always somewhere to be found.

Following their study, the Plastic Soup Foundation published the following data in 2022:

• “80% of all samples combined contained detectable amounts of at least 1 type of plastic”
• “None of the fresh feed samples contained detectable amounts of plastic particles”
• “100% of the pellets and shredded-feed samples contained detectable amounts of at least 1 type of plastic”
• “100% of the cow and pig blood samples contained detectable amounts of at least 1 type of plastic”
• “72% of the milk samples of any type contained detectable amounts of at least 1 type of plastic”
• “75% of the meat samples of any type contained detectable amounts of at least 1 type of plastic”
• “Plastic particles in feed pellets represents one of the possible exposure routes through which plastic particles reach the bodies of animals”

From my own research back in 2023, there are many different microplastics out on the market. Primarily, the presence of cloth fibers – often made of polyethylene terephthalate – are what’s commonly found in animal meats. In fact, “Nylon and fiber were identified as the predominant polymer types and shapes of MPs found in cow and sheep tissues” (Farkhondeh Bahrani et al.). There are other types of fabrics out there, but these two seem to be the heaviest hitters. Quality of material definitely impacts how fast something degrades, however there is a decent bit of fast-fashion in the world as well as clothing waste. Both of these factors contribute to the concentration of microplastics in our world based on their decomposition rates. Of course, there are socioeconomic factors to take into consideration as well, but those are the big reasons, which lead us to our final question.

Why on earth do we care?

We live on this Earth, number one. For a species that was supposedly given the intellect and physiology to help the planet, we’re doing a pretty darn horrible job at it. Plastic is leaching into our ecosystems, our natural wonders, our food and drink... and into us. Just like how cows are eating plastics hidden in their foods, that same effect is happening to us. To break it down, let’s say that one pound of corn has a singular gram of microplastics. Now, let’s watch the trend:

This isn’t my best artwork, but you get the point.

Like I said, meat has been around for almost forever. We’ve been around for almost forever. Cattle evolved from whales of all things! Maybe my Dad is right, and we evolved from fish, but the point of the matter is that plastic accumulates, and can accumulate in living tissues.

We’re living tissues. You and me, your professors. We’re all just meat.

And we’re getting sick.

As stated by my random rant to my microbiology professor:

Fat-soluble microplastics --> enter into fatty meats (i.e. Marbled steaks, pork, etc.) --> stay in meats due to high fat content --> people consume the meat --> plastics get stuck in people (adipose) --> people develop epigenetic reactions to MPs being stuck in them --> hormone dysregulation --> chronic illness, disease, other resistances --> meat is typically linked with T2 Diabetes (even before MP studies really began) --> population obesity is worsening --> baby birth weights are increasing, affecting mortality rates.... so on and so forth.

Maybe these should be inside thoughts? Oh well.

In this article, we talked about microplastics in meat. What I didn’t tell you is that microplastics can be fat-soluble, leading them to like the adipose (fat) tissue of living things. I wouldn’t be surprised that when people lose fat, they also lose a considerable percentage of microplastics from their body as well. With this thinking, I’d like to say that perhaps it’s not only high fat content that is harmful to human health, but the micro-items that get trapped in those lipids as well. The longer I live, the higher the prevalence of chronic disease, cancer, allergies, heightened immune responses, and other health deficits seem to become.

I think there are plenty of conspiracies to be had involving animal agriculture, microplastics, health downfall, socio-economic instability, and other stuff, but that’s for another day. Maybe I’ll go into the hormonal effects microplastics have on the body, but that’s definitely going to be for another article, because I’m almost at five pages. That’s a lot of writing.

Finally, the last message I’d like to convey to you all is that I’m not telling you this to scare you. I’m not. Yet, there is a difference between blissful ignorance and simply not being aware of real issues. I’m not saying I’m a saint either; I literally study microplastics but still use plastic products. That’s the irony of it: Escape is nearly impossible, as we’ve become so reliant on the stuff. All I want to do is provide unbiased, true information from a scientific-yet-digestible standpoint that could benefit the Earth and her beauty.

I hope that everyone is having a fabulous week, and that your life is given some joy this week. All my love to you all, and always know that getting outside never hurts.

With peace, love, and peanut butter, your friend,
Beatrice

For those who are new, feel free to email me at bglav1@unh.newhaven.edu with questions, comments, blog ideas, or typo concerns, lol. Thank you so much for reading, and I cannot wait to see you again! Stay tuned.

Works Cited

Bosch, Fleur. “Around 80% of Cow and Pig Meat, Blood and Milk Contains Plastic.” Plastic Soup Foundation, 7 July 2022, www.plasticsoupfoundation.org/en/2022/07/80-of-cow-and-pig-meat-blood-and-milk-contains-plastic/. Accessed 28 Sept. 2024.

Farkhondeh Bahrani, et al. “Occurrence of Microplastics in Edible Tissues of Livestock (Cow and Sheep).” Environmental Science and Pollution Research International, vol. 31, no. 14, 26 Feb. 2024, pp. 22145–22157, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-32424-9. Accessed 18 Sept. 2024.

Kedzierski, Mikaël, et al. “Microplastic Contamination of Packaged Meat: Occurrence and Associated Risks.” Food Packaging and Shelf Life, vol. 24, June 2020, p. 100489, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fpsl.2020.100489. Accessed 18 Sept. 2024.

“Plastic Overshoot Day: Report 2024.” Earth Action, 11 Apr. 2024, www.e-a.earth/plastic-overshoot-day-report-2024/.

Sánchez, Alicia , et al. “Processes Influencing the Toxicity of Microplastics Ingested through the Diet.” ScienceDirect, ScienceDirect, 30 Oct. 2024, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308814624015978. Accessed 19 Sept. 2024.