Microplastics and Their Effect in Horticultural Crops: Food Safety and Plant Stress

The presence of micro and nanoplastics in the food chain constitutes an emergent multifactorial food safety and physiological stress problem, which must be approached with a strategic perspective since it affects public health when consuming products that have this pollutant, such as fish and crustaceans, fruits, and vegetables. In this review, the authors present the results by scientists from different disciplines who are dedicated to discovering their chemical constitution and origin, the contents of these microparticles in edible plants, the contamination of water-irrigated soils, the mechanisms that concentrate microplastics in these soils, methods to determine them, contamination of freshwater sources of cities, and the negative effect of nano and microplastics on various food products and their detrimental impact on the environment. Recent findings of plant uptake mechanisms complement this, but more research is needed.

Automated summary

The presence of micro and nanoplastics in the food chain poses a multifactorial food safety and physiological stress problem, affecting public health. Scientists from various disciplines have been studying the chemical composition and origin of these particles, their contamination in edible plants, soil, and freshwater sources, as well as their detrimental impact on food products and the environment, with additional research needed.