By- Sahr Ahmed
Latest research conducted in the last year and months has found high levels of microplastics in various common Indian brands of salt and sugar which are dangerous for health. And now that such progressively tiny particles begin to penetrate our food chain, one must learn the consequences and act accordingly for the sake of both health and the environment.
The Microplastics Menace:
It depends on what is meant by micro – if they refer to ‘microbeads’ then they are spheres that are less than 5mm in size, and that come from the breakdown of macroplastic items or sources like shampoos and soaps. It is evident that these particles are found in nearly all aspects of our environment; such as in oceans or soil, now they have leaped, and cannot be found in our foods.
Research conducted in the recent past has pointed out that microplastics are present in various Indian brands of salt and sugar and this is rather alarming because the use of salt and sugar is quite indispensable in cooking. Microplastics are a menace in our environment they affect hormonal balance, cause inflammation, and may lead to specific types of cancer.
How Does Microplastic Get into Our Food Chain?
Microplastics can and do enter the food chain through several routes. As for salt, it accompanies sea water during evaporation during salt production processes and the like like salt production. In the same way that has been noted for plastic, sugar can get contaminated by the used packaging material, processing tools, or even during the time of refining.
Measures to Reduce Microplastic Pollution:
While the complete elimination of microplastics is challenging, several steps can be taken to reduce their presence in our food:
Stricter Regulations:
They require the government to tighten up the understanding of food production and packaging sectors. This involves; making sure that the seawater used in the salting process is free from any chemicals and that the sugars undergo refinement away from plastic materials.
Improved Packaging Solutions:
Manufacturers should use biodegradable materials or recyclable products to replace traditional plastic products including; glass, paper, etc. This not only minimizes microplastic pollution but also shrinks the overall plastic trace in a system.
Consumer Awareness:
Consumers are consuming microplastics and, they have to be educated on the risks associated with this and the fact that they should be consuming goods with the least interaction with plastics. It thus becomes helpful to encourage awareness campaigns as well as the labeling standards to enable the right decisions to be made on which products to buy.
Innovation in Filtration:
Research and discovery of innovative techniques that can filter microplastics during the manufacturing and purifying process is very necessary. This could entail the need to clean more intensely, or through ultracentrifugation, and nano-filtering techniques.
Encouraging Research:
More studies have been called for relating to the effects of microplastics on human health together with the routes of penetrations into foods. It is therefore hoped that the findings will be useful for policy and practice in the food industry sectors.
Alternative Brands to Consider:
This means that due to the content of microplastics in some Indian brands of salt and sugar, the consumer should maybe look for other brands associated with the lack of impurities specifically microplastics.
Organic Tattva:
This brand has a variety of organic salt and sugar products most of which are processed with the lowest possibility of exposure to plastics. Natural salt tattva and natural sugar tattva are also preferable to be used in the preparation of foods.
24 Mantra Organic:
With a reputation for being selective about the quality of its products, 24 Mantra offers its customers organic salt and sugar which are not likely to contain microplastics. There are some 24 Mantra products such as 24 Mantra Rock Salt and 24 Mantra Brown Sugar.
Conscious Food:
This brand promotes natural and organic goods; substitutions, for example, include Conscious Food Unrefined Cane Sugar and Of course, Conscious Food Himalayan Pink Salt.
Conclusion:
Pollution with microplastic is a well-known problem of the modern world and unfortunately, the phenomenon only continues to expand, threatening human health and the existence of various species of fauna. Such steps include all efforts at increasing awareness about the effects of these particles, fighting for higher regulatory standards for products that emit them into the atmosphere, and supporting environmentally friendly brands. Today, the world is at a stage where personal and environmental health decisions can be made more effectively.
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