Plastic food packaging blankets the world’s coastlines, study finds

Food and beverage plastics are the primary pollutant on global coastlines, appearing as the most common litter in 93% of 112 nations surveyed. A study published May 20 in the journal One Earth indicates that waste management alone cannot curb this trend, necessitating a global reduction in plastic production to protect marine ecosystems.

Why are food and beverage plastics dominating global shorelines?

Production volumes of single-use plastics have outpaced the ability of waste infrastructure to contain them. According to the One Earth study, which analyzed 5,300 shoreline litter surveys and 355 peer-reviewed papers, food and beverage plastics were the top litter category in nearly every country surveyed.

The most frequent culprits are food packaging, caps, lids, and plastic bottles. These three items ranked as the top pollutants in more than half of the surveyed nations, including the world’s five most populous countries: China, India, the United States, Indonesia, and Pakistan.

Max Richard Kelly of the University of Plymouth, the study’s lead author, told Mongabay that the consistency of this pattern across different nations is a “stark reminder” of the scale of the crisis. Plastic bags and cigarettes followed food packaging as the next most prevalent categories.

How does this data compare to previous marine litter assessments?

The One Earth findings reinforce earlier research but provide a more granular, national-scale view. In 2021, Carmen Morales-Caselles of the University of Cádiz led an assessment of more than 12 million pieces of marine litter, which also found that take-away consumer products dominated the waste.

While the 2021 study looked at the general volume of marine litter, the 2026 study by Kelly and his team proves the same pattern exists consistently at the national level. Morales-Caselles told Mongabay that this provides “strong independent confirmation” that food and beverage plastics are a globally pervasive problem.

What happens to marine ecosystems when plastic accumulates?

Plastic debris physically alters the environment, reducing the ability of coastal habitats to function. Muhammad Reza Cordova, a marine scientist at Indonesia’s National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), stated that plastics can smother roots, sediments, and seagrass leaves.

This accumulation reduces light penetration and degrades habitat quality. According to Cordova, these changes may eventually reduce the capacity of mangroves and seagrass meadows to store carbon efficiently.

The impact on wildlife is more immediate. Seabirds, sea turtles, and mammals often mistake plastic for food, leading to internal blockages, choking, and starvation. These habitats also serve as critical nurseries for juvenile fish; plastic stress compounds existing threats from climate change and coastal development.

Why isn’t recycling solving the plastic crisis?

Current recycling rates are too low to offset the volume of new plastic entering the market. A 2022 report from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Global Plastics Outlook, found that only 9% of the world’s plastic is ever recycled.

The remaining 91% ends up in landfills or leaks into the environment. Max Richard Kelly argues that waste management technologies cannot keep pace with production volumes. He suggests that the only viable solution is to cap the production of avoidable plastics and mandate “end of life” designs for essential plastics.

What are the viable alternatives to single-use plastics?

Banning plastics isn’t always feasible, especially in low-income communities that rely on affordable single-use sachets. Muhammad Reza Cordova suggests that instead of outright bans, governments should implement refill and reuse systems and bulk purchasing options.

Cordova emphasizes that alternatives must remain affordable. If policies simply shift costs to the consumer without providing accessible alternatives, the underlying pollution problem remains unsolved.

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