In a report published today, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has laid out the serious implications of agricultural plastics, urgently calling for ‘coordinated and decisive action’. The report, entitled ‘Assessment of Agricultural Plastics and their Sustainability: A Call for Action’, identifies alternatives and interventions which could improve the circularity and ‘sound management’ of agricultural plastics. The report seeks to fill the research gap surrounding the issue, comparing it to the better-documented issue of marine plastics. Though poorly documented, the FAO says, agricultural plastic pollution is far more significant, and poses an even greater risk to food security, human health, and the environment.
Data suggests that only small fractions of agricultural plastics are collected and recycled, predominantly in developed countries. Elsewhere, the report states, most plastics are incinerated, buried, or landfilled, with record-keeping virtually ‘non-existent’. The burning of agricultural plastics is a source of toxic emissions, including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans, both persistent organic pollutants. The report further notes that the majority of plastics are derived from fossil-based sources, contributing to global greenhouse gas emissions across the supply chain.
The FAO’s research has revealed the impact of plastics on agricultural yields, with the accumulation in surface soils of mulching film – a major category of agricultural plastic by mass – linked to a reduced yield. According to industry experts, global demand for greenhouse, mulching and silage films will increase by 50 per cent, from 6.1 million tonnes in 2018 to 9.5 million tonnes in 2030. The report also raises concerns about the formation and journey of microplastics derived from agricultural plastic products, these materials having the potential to transfer along trophic levels, with the possibility of significantly affecting human health. Larger plastic residues in both aquatic and terrestrial environments also have the potential to harm wildlife through entanglement and indigestion.
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