True Cost of Plastics in Our Food Systems

Every year, farmers cover their land in enough plastic mulch to cover hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of farmland – an area, if we visualise, could be more than the state of Kerala or Bihar. Some of these agricultural plastics are often seen as vital, performing critical functions for productivity and efficiency by boosting yield, conserving moisture, controlling pests, and supporting better resource use. These functions have been paramount to the economic viability of food production, but the true cost of producing and using plastics in agriculture remains relatively unknown and unaccounted for.

This World Environment Day, when we shift our focus to End Plastic Pollution, we are reminded again of the triple planetary crisis  – climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution, the three deeply interconnected threats to human and ecosystem health. This global focus on plastic pollution offers another opportunity to reflect on adopting a holistic approach to the entire plastic life cycle – from production and use to disposal. Public and policy attention has largely focused on visible aspects of plastic pollution, and programmes such as Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) reiterate the importance of sustainable consumption and behavioural change.  However, we must not overlook the quieter crisis unfolding beneath our feet: the increasing presence of plastics in our soils, and their subsequent entry into our food systems, posing a growing threat to food security and human health.

As per the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Report 2021, agricultural value chains used an estimated 12.5 million tonnes (MT) of plastics in plant and animal production with 37.3 MT in food packaging in the year 2019. Without any widely adopted sustainable alternatives, the report also suggests that global demand for materials like greenhouse, mulching, silage films is projected to grow by 50% by 2030.  Asia alone accounts for nearly half of this usage.  A growing body of research shows that agricultural soils, as long-term plastic sinks, may now contain more microplastics than oceans. These particles enter the soil through mulch films, plastic bags, plastic-coated fertilisers, sewage sludge, compost, contaminated greywater, and even atmospheric deposition.

Research is also showing us that plastics can have both ecosystem and species level impacts. When remaining in the environment for prolonged periods, plastics can fragment under UV light, heat and mechanical abrasion into micro and nano plastics (<5mm and <1 μm respectively). These disrupt soil structure, harm microbial populations, and interfere with water retention and nutrient cycling. Additionally, as water scarcity intensifies, the use of recycled domestic and industrial effluents (greywater) for irrigation is becoming more common – often carrying substantial microplastic and chemical loads. Once applied to fields, these particles bind with soil and are retained in pore spaces, effectively turning soil into the planet’s largest plastic sink.

Beyond soil, emerging research shows that microplastics are harming bee populations and disrupting pollination. Exposure to microplastics has been linked to cognitive impairment in bees, affecting their ability to associate floral scents with nectar. Once ingested, microplastics can infiltrate their digestive systems and even their brains, increasing vulnerability to infections like Hafnia alvei – a bacterium associated with colony collapse. These effects reduce pollination efficiency and, in some cases, lead to bee mortality, further threatening crop yields and food security. Plastics have even entered crop-tissues such as tomatoes, lettuce and root vegetables via capillary action, eventually ending up on our plates and in our bodies. The studies are raising alarming questions about food safety and human health worldwide.

The impacts on human health are already becoming evident: microplastics have already been found in human faeces, lungs, and placentas and studies have even shown mother-to-foetus transmission of nano-plastics. Emerging research also points to potential links with endocrine disruption, inflammation, and carcinogenic risk. Microplastics have also been detected in the human brain at notably higher concentrations than in other organs. Alarmingly, this accumulation appears to be on the rise, with studies indicating a 50% increase over the past eight years. These signs should be enough to push for preventive action. 

Field-based research on how microplastics move from soil into crops, and eventually into our food, remains limited within developing countries, with most existing studies concentrated in developed regions. Moreover, much of the current research on ecosystem impacts in agricultural landscapes tends to focus only on soil contamination, leaving broader implications underexplored. This lack of data and scientific evidence risks leaving microplastic pollution unaccounted for in policy frameworks, subsidy structures, and food safety regulations. Often remaining unnoticed, it is often paid later through medical bills, remediation efforts and lost livelihoods.

Without taking into consideration these hidden costs, plastics may appear like an economical option. However, reports suggest that their true lifecycle costs, from production to usage and disposal can exceed market prices by an order of magnitude. A systems-lens is needed to uncover and understand the true cost of plastics in agriculture, a lens that assesses impacts across four capitals – natural (soil, water, biodiversity, ecosystem services), produced (infrastructure), human (health and nutrition) and social (community networks and wellbeing). Leveraging true-cost accounting frameworks such as TEEBAgriFood or ValuES, can help unravel the impacts of plastic use, providing a more complete picture of the costs and benefits, and enabling sustainable and informed choices. Moreover, it can also build economic evidence for scaling sustainable agriculture programmes, such as the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture, National Mission on Natural Farming and Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) that can provide suitable alternatives to plastic use in agriculture.

As the world comes together to address plastic pollution, it is important to broaden the focus beyond visible waste to include the less visible but growing presence of plastics in our soils and food systems. Agriculture, a sector so intimately tied to health, nutrition, and livelihoods, must not remain a blind spot in the plastics discourse. Without accounting for the hidden and long-term costs of plastic use in farming, we risk undermining the health of our food systems. By leveraging true-cost approaches into national programmes and policies, India can lead the way in aligning agricultural development with environmental integrity and human well-being.

This World Environment Day offers not only a moment to reflect – but also an opportunity to reimagine how we grow our food. The choices we make today will shape the future of our soils, our food systems, and our collective well-being.