Give supermarkets a plastic-free aisle

A recent study by Plymouth University showed that one third of the fish caught off the coast of South West England contained plastic, while the University of Ghent showed seafood eaters ingest up to 11,000 pieces of plastic each year. Last year a UN report warned that people who consume plastic-contaminated fish are exposed to chemicals that can cause infertility.

Leaching of phthalate chemicals used in plastic packaging may also pose a real threat to health: in 2014 a US Government advisory panel report raised serious concerns about phthalates’ links to cancer.

The vast majority of the 300 million tons of plastic produced globally each year remains unrecyclable.

Much of Britain’s plastic waste is incinerated, which releases a cocktail of harmful chemicals.

Plastic remains a very useful material. But consumers who want to reject single-use plastic packaging for alternatives currently have little choice.

A Plastic Planet, a campaign group, is leading calls for supermarkets to introduce a plastic-free aisle in stores. This will give shoppers a real choice.

Plastic packaging is damaging our environment and we do not know enough about its effects on human health.

That is why we are, today, calling for a plastic-free aisle in supermarkets. Prof Sir David Baulcombe, University of Cambridge; Dr Tracey Beacham, Plymouth

Marine Laboratory; Dr Federica Bertocchini, University of Cantabria; Dr Paolo Bombelli, University of Cambridge; Prof Simon Capewell, University of Liverpool; Prof Steve Evans, University of Cambridge; Dr Ian Henderson, Cambridge Global Food Security Initiative; Prof Frank Kelly, King’s College London; Prof Tim Lang, University of London; Dr Audrey de Nazelle, Imperial College, London