Microplastics in Food Packaging Research Report | From Pack to Plate

This is the first time we’ve been able to put numbers to this problem at a global scale - showing how much plastic from food packaging may be ending up in what we eat, and where action can begin.

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Food packaging is often treated as a passive barrier. But under everyday conditions—heat, light, friction, storage, and repeated handling—it can degrade, releasing micro- and nanoplastics directly into food and beverages.

From Pack to Plate, is developed by Earth Action with support from rePurpose Global and the Innovation Alliance for a Global Plastics Treaty, is the first global synthesis to quantify this pathway across packaging formats and real-world use conditions.

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Download the report to understand which packaging formats and use conditions drive microplastic release - and where brands, manufacturers, and policymakers can begin reducing exposure through better design.

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What’s inside the report

• A first-of-its-kind global synthesis of micro- and nanoplastic migration from food packaging into food
• Estimates of global and per-person exposure from packaging-related microplastic release
• A comparison of key packaging formats, including PET bottles, flexible PE packaging, rigid PET, rigid PP, rigid PS, and multilayer packaging
• Analysis of the real-world conditions that increase release, including light exposure, heat, abrasion, transport, storage, opening and closing, and repeated handling
• A practical framework for identifying where exposure is concentrated and where intervention is most feasible
• Recommendations for brands, manufacturers, policymakers, and researchers working on packaging safety and sustainability