Are You Consuming Microplastics? 10 Foods Secretly Hiding Them + More
Source: Children’s Health Defense
Are You Consuming Microplastics? 10 Foods Secretly Hiding Them
Microplastics have been under the microscope lately, especially considering it’s estimated that people consume between 39,000 and 52,000 microplastic particles yearly. That number goes up to 74,000 to 121,000 particles when you include those we breathe in. Microplastics have become such a part of our lives that a new study found a plastic spoon’s worth of tiny plastic shards in human brain tissue. That sounds bad, but exactly how bad is it?
To dig deeper, we spoke with a family physician about what counts as a “safe” level of microplastics, which foods they hide in and how to limit your exposure. “There is no officially established ‘safe’ or ‘unsafe’ level of microplastic intake. It makes sense to want your exposure to be as low as possible,” Dr. Joseph Mercola, a board-certified family medicine osteopathic physician, said in an email.
Microplastics can enter our food due to contamination where the food was grown, raised or processed. Mercola explained that using plastic mulch and plastic seed coatings in agriculture, and irrigation with contaminated water, are among the various ways microplastics can end up in food. Plastic packaging, utensils and containers are additional sources.
RFK Jr. Unveils New ‘Transparency’ Tool That Lets You Search Chemical Contaminants in Foods
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has unveiled a new tool that allows people to look up chemical contaminants in foods from a large database. The database was created to give Americans more transparency and “modernize” food chemical safety, a press release from Health and Human Services (HHS) said.
“HHS is committed to radical transparency to give Americans authentic, informed consent about what they are eating,” Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in a statement Thursday. “This new Chemical Contaminants Transparency Tool is a critical step for industry to Make America Healthy Again.”
The tool, which can be accessed here, includes tolerances, action levels, guidance levels, derived intervention levels, recommended maximum levels, and advisory levels of contaminants. Some of the contaminants included in the database are Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, or DDT, a synthetic pesticide; Chlordane, an organochlorine pesticide; and Aldrin and Dieldrin, which are both synthetic chemicals in the insecticide family.
A Movement to Ban Food Dyes Gains Ground Across the U.S.
Across the U.S., a longtime push to ban synthetic dyes in food is gaining renewed momentum, with critics of the dyes insisting it’s not a matter of if, but when. States like West Virginia have cited the Make America Healthy Again movement, led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as a driving force, along with concerns among parents and some scientists that dyes might contribute to behavioral problems in kids — a link the Food and Drug Administration says it is monitoring but hasn’t established.
In the first three months of the year, 20 states — including Oklahoma, West Virginia and New York — have introduced nearly 40 bills aimed at cracking down on artificial dyes and other food additives, the most in any year, according to the Environmental Working Group, a food safety advocacy group.
“We’re really encouraged,” said Brandon Cawood, an advocate for eliminating food dyes who, along with his wife, Whitney, created “To Dye For: The Documentary,” a film that has been cited by West Virginia lawmakers. “Oklahoma, Utah, Tennessee have bills on the table. Florida, New York, Texas, Arizona. All these states all over the place are popping up.”
US Turns to Brazil for Eggs and Considers Other Sources During Bird Flu Outbreak
The U.S. has almost doubled imports of Brazilian eggs once used only for pet food and is considering relaxing regulations for eggs laid by chickens raised for meat, as President Donald Trump’s administration seeks to bring down sky-high prices spiked by bird flu.
While none of the Brazilian or broiler chicken eggs would wind up on grocery shelves, they could be used in processed foods such as cake mixes, ice cream or salad dressing, freeing up more fresh eggs for shoppers. Allowing use of broiler chicken eggs would require changing regulations, and some food safety experts warned that this could risk tainting food products with harmful bacteria.
Nationwide economic strain persists from the virus that has wiped out nearly 170 million chickens, turkeys and other birds since early 2022. Grocery shoppers peruse thinly stocked shelves, restaurants have raised menu prices, and wholesale egg prices surged 53.6% in February before easing a bit in March. The egg shortage has fueled food inflation even as Trump’s trade disputes have threatened to disrupt supply chains and raise costs for fresh produce and other goods.
Artificial Meat Market Projected to Hit USD 25.0 B by 2034, Growing at a 5.4% CAGR Amid Rising for Natural Ingredients
The global artificial meat market is witnessing robust growth, driven by a combination of technological innovation, shifting dietary preferences, environmental concerns and growing health consciousness.
With increasing investments in sustainable food alternatives, the artificial meat industry is undergoing transformative developments across various segments. According to recent insights from Market Research Future, the market is segmented by production method, meat type, target consumer, distribution channel, packaging type and region — each contributing to the evolving landscape of the industry.
The artificial meat market size was estimated at 1.42 billion in 2022. The artificial meat industry is expected to grow from 1.89 billion in 2023 to 25.0 billion by 2032. The artificial meat market CAGR (growth rate) is expected to be around 33.23% during the forecast period (2024 – 2032). Key Players: Beyond Meat, Aleph Farms, Tyson Foods, Oatly, Future Meat Technologies, CellulaREvolution, Redefine Meat, Mosa Meat, Eat Just, Clearmeat, Cultured Decadence, Impossible Foods, NIMP, SuperMeat, Memphis Meats.
