ABSTRACT Plastic pollution arising from food systems is driving policies for reduction, removal, reuse and recycling, but literature on plastic uses and outcomes across subsectors is

fragmented. We use a systematic scoping review to describe the extent, range and nature of published evidence since 2000 on seven major plastic types used at any point within food systems

and their quantifiable effects on the environment, food security and human health. Although the majority of publications focus on agricultural production, relatively fewer consider retail,

household and food waste disposal plastics. Gaps in the research include evidence from low- and middle-income countries, health or food security and/or economic outcomes generated from human

subscribe This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution ACCESS OPTIONS Access through your institution Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals Get

Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription $32.99 / 30 days cancel any time Learn more Subscribe to this journal Receive 12 digital issues and online access to articles $119.00 per

year only $9.92 per issue Learn more Buy this article * Purchase on SpringerLink * Instant access to full article PDF Buy now Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during

checkout ADDITIONAL ACCESS OPTIONS: * Log in * Learn about institutional subscriptions * Read our FAQs * Contact customer support SIMILAR CONTENT BEING VIEWED BY OTHERS PLASTICS MATTER IN

THE FOOD SYSTEM Article Open access 06 March 2025 STRENGTHENING GLOBAL PLASTIC POLICY WITH SYSTEMS ANALYSIS Article 22 April 2025 THE USE OF PLASTIC AS A HOUSEHOLD FUEL AMONG THE URBAN POOR

IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH Article 18 February 2025 DATA AVAILABILITY The data for this review are available as an open access interactive gap map, accessible online via

https://anh-academy.org/foodplastics_EGM.html. The search strategy and coding framework are available as Supplementary Information. Citations of studies eligible in this review are available

in alternative formats from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Source data are provided with this paper. CODE AVAILABILITY The full coding strategy used for data extraction

and analysis of studies included in our review is provided in Supplementary Methods 3. REFERENCES * Geyer, R., Jambeck, J. R. & Law, K. L. Production, use and fate of all plastics ever

made. _Sci. Adv._ 3, 19–24 (2017). Article  Google Scholar  * Scarascia-Mugnozza, G., Sica, C. & Russo, G. Plastic materials in European agriculture: actual use and perspectives. _J.

Agric. Eng._ 42, 15–28 (2012). Google Scholar  * Schweitzer, J.-P. et al. _Unwrapped: How Throwaway Plastic is Failing to Solve Europe’s Food Waste Problem (and What We Need to do Instead)_

(Institute for European Environmental Policy, 2018). * Hopewell, J., Dvorak, R. & Kosior, E. Plastics recycling: challenges and opportunities. _Philos. Trans. R. Soc. B_ 364, 2115–2126

(2009). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  * Han, J.-W., Ruiz-Garcia, L., Qian, J.-P. & Yang, X.-T. Food packaging: a comprehensive review and future trends. _Compr. Rev. Food Sci. Food Saf._

17, 860–877 (2018). Article  Google Scholar  * Thompson, R. C., Moore, C. J., vom Saal, F. S. & Swan, S. H. Plastics, the environment and human health: current consensus and future

trends. _Philos. Trans. R. Soc. B_ 364, 2153–2166 (2009). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  * Samtani, J. B., Derr, J., Conway, M. A. & Flanagan, R. D. III Evaluating soil solarization for

weed control and strawberry (_Fragaria xananassa_) yield in annual plasticulture production. _Weed Technol._ 31, 455–463 (2017). Article  Google Scholar  * Bergmann, M. et al. White and

wonderful? Microplastics prevail in snow from the Alps to the Arctic. _Sci. Adv._ 5, eaax1157 (2019). Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar  * Lavers, J. L., Dicks, L., Dicks, M. R. &

Finger, A. Significant plastic accumulation on the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Australia. _Sci. Rep._ 9, 7102 (2019). Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar  * Tyree, C. & Morrison, D.

_Invisibles: The Plastic Inside Us_ (Orb Multimedia, 2018). * Gundert‐Remy, U. et al. _Bisphenol A (BPA) Hazard Assessment Protocol_ EFSA Supporting Publication (EFSA, 2017). *

_Microplastics in Drinking-Water_ (World Health Organization, 2019). * Turner, C. et al. _Concepts and Methods for Food Environment Research in Low and Middle Income Countries_ (Agriculture,

Nutrition and Health Academy Food Environments Working Group, Department for International Development, 2017). * _The State of Food and Agriculture:_ _Food Systems for Better Nutrition_

(Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2013); http://www.fao.org/docrep/018/i3300e/i3300e01.pdf * Yates, J. et al. PROTOCOL: plastics in the food system: human health,

economic and environmental impacts. A scoping review. _Campbell Syst. Rev._ 15, e1033 (2019). Google Scholar  * Barnes, S. J. Understanding plastics pollution: the role of economic

development and technological research. _Environ. Pollut._ 249, 812–821 (2019). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  * Dauvergne, P. Why is the global governance of plastic failing the oceans?

_Glob. Environ. Change_ 51, 22–31 (2018). Article  Google Scholar  * Gaupp, F., Hall, J., Hochrainer-Stigler, S. & Dadson, S. Changing risks of simultaneous global breadbasket failure.

_Nat. Clim. Change_ 10, 54–57 (2020). Article  ADS  Google Scholar  * Watts, N. et al. The 2019 report of The Lancet Countdown on health and climate change: ensuring that the health of a

child born today is not defined by a changing climate. _Lancet_ 394, 1836–1878 (2019). Article  Google Scholar  * He, G., Wang, Z., Li, S. & Malhi, S. S. Plastic mulch: tradeoffs between

productivity and greenhouse gas emissions. _J. Clean. Prod._ 172, 1311–1318 (2018). Article  Google Scholar  * Qin, W., Hu, C. & Oenema, O. Soil mulching significantly enhances yields

and water and nitrogen use efficiencies of maize and wheat: a meta-analysis. _Sci. Rep._ 5, 16210 (2015). Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar  * Marles, R. J. Mineral nutrient composition of

vegetables, fruits and grains: the context of reports of apparent historical declines. _J. Food Compos. Anal._ 56, 93–103 (2017). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  * Gao, H. et al. Effects of

plastic mulching and plastic residue on agricultural production: a meta-analysis. _Sci. Total Environ._ 651, 484–492 (2019). Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar  * Gillespie, S. & Harris,

J. in _Nourishing Millions: Stories of Change in Nutrition_ (eds Gillespie, S., Hodge, J., Yosef, S. & Pandya-Lorch, R.) 1–13 (International Food Policy Research Institute, 2016). *

Healy, B. F., English, K. R., Jagals, P. & Sly, P. D. Bisphenol A exposure pathways in early childhood: reviewing the need for improved risk assessment models. _J. Expo. Sci. Environ.

Epidemiol._ 25, 544–556 (2015). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  * Seachrist, D. D. et al. A review of the carcinogenic potential of bisphenol A. _Reprod. Toxicol._ 59, 167–182 (2016). Article

  CAS  Google Scholar  * Ziv-Gal, A. & Flaws, J. A. Evidence for bisphenol A-induced female infertility: a review (2007–2016). _Fertil. Steril._ 106, 827–856 (2016). Article  CAS  Google

Scholar  * Haram, L. E., Carlton, J. T., Ruiz, G. M. & Maximenko, N. A. A plasticene lexicon. _Mar. Pollut. Bull._ 150, 110714 (2020). Article  CAS  Google Scholar  * European Food

Safety Authority. Scientific opinion on the risks to public health related to the presence of bisphenol A (BPA) in foodstuffs. _EFSA J._ 13, 1 (2015). * Muncke, J. Exposure to endocrine

disrupting compounds via the food chain: is packaging a relevant source? _Sci. Total Environ._ 407, 4549–4559 (2009). Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar  * Søeborg, T., Frederiksen, H. &

Andersson, A. M. Cumulative risk assessment of phthalate exposure of Danish children and adolescents using the hazard index approach. _Int. J. Androl._ 35, 245–252 (2012). Article  Google

Scholar  * Puype, F., Samsonek, J., Knoop, J., Egelkraut-Holtus, M. & Ortlieb, M. Evidence of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) relevant substances in polymeric

food-contact articles sold on the European market. _Food Addit. Contam. A_ 32, 410–426 (2015). CAS  Google Scholar  * Rani, M. et al. Hexabromocyclododecane in polystyrene based consumer

products: an evidence of unregulated use. _Chemosphere_ 110, 111–119 (2013). Article  ADS  Google Scholar  * _Single-Use Plastics: A Roadmap for Sustainability_ (UNEP, 2018);

http://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/25496/singleUsePlastic_sustainability.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y * Knoblauch, D., Mederake, L. & Stein, U. Developing countries

in the lead—what drives the diffusion of plastic bag policies? _Sustainability_ 10, 1994 (2018). Article  Google Scholar  * Hughes, K. _Protector or Polluter? The Impact of COVID-19 on the

Movement to End Plastic Waste_ (World Economic Forum, 2020). * Adyel, T. M. Accumulation of plastic waste during COVID-19. _Science_ 369, 1314–1315 (2020). Article  ADS  Google Scholar  *

The European plastics recycling industry has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Plummeting oil prices have resulted in a sharp decline of virgin plastics prices. _Recycling

Magazine_ (April 2020);

https://www.recycling-magazine.com/2020/06/17/the-european-plastics-recycling-industry-has-been-severely-impacted-by-the-covid-19-pandemic-plummeting-oil-prices-have-resulted-in-a-sharp-decline-of-virgin-plastics-prices/

* Ebata, A., Nisbett, N. & Gillespie, S. _Food Systems and Building Back Better_ (Institute of Development Studies, 2020). * Gordon, L. J. The Covid-19 pandemic stress the need to build

resilient production ecosystems. _Agric. Hum. Values_ 37, 645–646 (2020). Article  Google Scholar  * Tricco, A. C. et al. PRISMA extension for scoping reviews (PRISMA-ScR): checklist and

explanation. _Ann. Intern. Med._ 169, 467–473 (2018). Article  Google Scholar  * _World Bank Country and Lending Groups_ (The World Bank, 2019);

https://datahelpdesk.worldbank.org/knowledgebase/articles/906519 * Shemilt, I., Khan, N., Park, S. & Thomas, J. Use of cost-effectiveness analysis to compare the efficiency of study

identification methods in systematic reviews. _Syst. Rev._ 5, 140 (2016). Article  Google Scholar  Download references ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This review was conducted in partnership with the

Campbell Collaboration, for which we acknowledge the wider support of A. Saran, V. Welch, A. Bhavsar and A. O’Connor, as well as the EPPI Reviewer team at the University College London,

which includes J. Brunton, Z. Grouze and S. Graziosi. We thank J. Eyers for his specialist input in crafting our search strategy. Substantial contributions were also made by London School of

Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and Campbell-affiliated data screeners and coders, which include L. Hishi, A. Noubani, N. Ashley dela Cruz, P. Hawkins and A. Clarke. We express thanks to E.

Joy, T. Sparling and T. Galloway for ad hoc guidance concerning the process and/or content of the review. We thank O. Kolade for her programme management support via IMMANA. This study was

funded through UK Aid from the UK Government and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation via the Innovative Methods and Metrics for Agriculture and Nutrition Actions (IMMANA) programme,

based at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine. AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK Joe Yates, Megan

Deeney, Heike B. Rolker, Sofia Kalamatianou & Suneetha Kadiyala * The Campbell Collaboration, New Delhi, India Howard White Authors * Joe Yates View author publications You can also

search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Megan Deeney View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Heike B. Rolker View author publications

You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Howard White View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Sofia Kalamatianou View

author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Suneetha Kadiyala View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar

CONTRIBUTIONS The project was conceptualized by J.Y., M.D., S. Kalamatianou, and S. Kadiyala. Data were curated by M.D., H.B.R., J.Y. and S.Kadiyala. The formal analysis was by H.B.R., M.D.

and J.Y. The investigation was carried out by J.Y., M.D., H.B.R., S. Kadiyala and H.W. The methodology was designed by J.Y., M.D., H.B.R. and S. Kadiyala. H.W. supervised the project.

Visualization was by M.D., H.B.R. and J.Y. The original draft was written by J.Y., M.D. and H.B.R., and reviewed and edited by J.Y., M.D., H.B.R., S. Kadiyala and H.W. CORRESPONDING AUTHOR

Correspondence to Joe Yates. ETHICS DECLARATIONS COMPETING INTERESTS The authors declare no competing interests. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PEER REVIEW INFORMATION _Nature Food_ thanks Micah

Peters, Veena Sahajwalla, Pieter van Beukering and the other, anonymous, reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work. PUBLISHER’S NOTE Springer Nature remains neutral

with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary Methods 1–3. SOURCE DATA SOURCE DATA

FIG. 3 Volume of literature (total studies) found according to food system subsectors and outcome domain. SOURCE DATA FIG. 4 Plastic use (exposure) and outcome categories under three impact

domains (total studies at the nexus of each relationship). SOURCE DATA FIG. 5 Number of publications by plastic type and impact domain. SOURCE DATA FIG. 6 Frequency of study designs used to

investigate the effects of plastic use in different food system subsectors. RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Yates, J., Deeney, M.,

Rolker, H.B. _et al._ A systematic scoping review of environmental, food security and health impacts of food system plastics. _Nat Food_ 2, 80–87 (2021).

https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-021-00221-z Download citation * Received: 23 March 2020 * Accepted: 11 January 2021 * Published: 18 February 2021 * Issue Date: February 2021 * DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1038/s43016-021-00221-z SHARE THIS ARTICLE Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Get shareable link Sorry, a shareable link is not

currently available for this article. Copy to clipboard Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative