Microplastics along the food chain: contamination pathways, consumer perception, and implications for sustainable food systems in Romania

Abstract

Sustainable food systems must reconcile rising global food demand with reducing environmental pressures across the entire food chain, and plastic-related pollution is increasingly recognized as one such pressure. Microplastics (MPs), particles smaller than 5 mm generated through the manufacture, use, and degradation of plastics, have been detected in agricultural soils, aquaculture systems, food-processing environments, packaging materials, and a wide range of food commodities, from seafood and table salt to honey, sugar, milk, and bottled water, as well as in human blood, placenta, and breast milk. This paper combines a review of the scientific literature on microplastic contamination pathways relevant to sustainable food systems with an empirical assessment of public awareness and behavioral readiness, based on a structured questionnaire administered in Romania in 2026 (n = 124). The review synthesizes evidence on primary and secondary sources of microplastics in food production, processing, and packaging, their occurrence in food commodities, human exposure routes, analytical challenges, and emerging mitigation strategies within a circular-economy framework. The survey shows that respondents readily associate food packaging with plastic content (124 of 124 respondents) and identify packaging as the leading perceived source of microplastics (95 of 124 respondents). However, awareness of specific food-related exposure pathways and of the analytical difficulties in confirming them remains limited. Willingness to adopt low-effort, food-shopping-related behaviors, such as using reusable bags and personal containers, is high, whereas support decreases for actions that require political or corporate engagement. The findings support the need for integrated communication and policy strategies that translate awareness into concrete, food-system-relevant sustainable behavior.