While our politicians, too busy with toy soldiers, continue to postpone decisions on global treaties on plastics, microplastics have already begun their silent invasion of the world's agricultural crops. No tanks or soldiers are needed for this war: particles smaller than five millimetres are sufficient, invisible to the naked eye but lethal for photosynthesis. A new study published in PNAS he quantified the impact, and the numbers are chilling: up to 18% reduction in photosynthetic capacity in terrestrial crops. Translated into practical terms? Imagine losing nearly a fifth of the global wheat, rice and corn harvest over the next 25 years. Not because of drought, not because of floods, not because of parasites. But because of tiny fragments of that plastic that we continue to produce as if there were no tomorrow. And maybe, at this point, there really won't be one.
The omnipresence of microplastics in agricultural crops
Le microplastics they are now like those annoying relatives who show up at every family party: you didn't invite them, but there they are, everywhere. In theair we breathe, in soil we cultivate, In 'water we drink, even in the food we eat. These tiny fragments of degraded plastic have reached every corner of the planet, from Antarctica to our brains. I'm not exaggerating: they really found them in the placenta.
But the real news, the one that should make us jump in our seats, is that these microscopic invaders are now interfering with one of the most fundamental and essential processes of life on the planet: photosynthesis. That biochemical miracle that allows plants to transform sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide into oxygen and sugars. That green magic that sustains virtually every food chain on Earth. Including our precious agricultural crops.
It's really scary.
So he comments Marcus Eriksen, marine scientist of the 5 Gyres Institute, a non-profit organization that researches plastic pollution. I can easily agree with this statement. Because when something threatens photosynthesis, is threatening the very foundations of life as we know it.
The Numbers That Should Wake Us Up (And Instead)
Researchers have discovered something that would make any doomsayer pale: the presence of microplastics can reduce photosynthesis by up to 12% on average. Does this seem like a small percentage? Think about it. In the world of agricultural crops, this translates into a reduction that can vary between 6 and 18%. In marine plants such as algae we are talking about 2-12%, while in freshwater algae between 4 and 14%.
The presence of microplastics is no longer surprising. What is surprising is the level of impact. The fact that they are so effectively sabotaging one of the most crucial mechanisms for our survival. With current rates of global plastic production (and resulting exposure to microplastics), farmers could see a annual yield loss of 4-13,5% in staple crops such as corn, rice and wheat over the next 25 years. Think about the magnitude of these numbers when you project them on a global scale, considering that these are grains which feed most of humanity.
A Silent Apocalypse for the Food Economy
It's not just wheat that's at risk in this invisible war. Seafood production could fall by up to 7% as aquatic ecosystems lose the algae that form the basis of their food webs. It’s like taking bricks out of a building’s foundation and expecting it to stay standing. What can go wrong?
The impact on the global economy would be devastating, not to mention the worsening of food insecurity for hundreds of millions of people. And all this in a world already grappling with climate change, conflict and growing inequalities in access to food. What I find particularly worrying is that we are talking about a not so distant future. This is not science fiction, this is not an environmental dystopia set in 2100. We're talking about the next 25 years. A time when many of us will still be here, wondering why the hell didn't we act when we still had time. And our children?
If we don’t act now, in the next 70-100 years, we will see ecological damage on a much larger scale.
Words of Richard Thompson, marine biologist specializing in microplastic pollution at theUniversity of Plymouth in England. Words that sound like a death sentence for the ecosystems we know, if we continue on the current path.
The Forgotten Connection to the Climate Crisis
The decline in photosynthesis could also hinder efforts to combat climate change. This is something that literally infuriates me, because we are talking about a double blow: not only the agricultural crops are decreasing, but we are also losing key allies in the fight against global warming.
When plants photosynthesize, they take carbon dioxide from the air into their tissues and store it as sugars. Most climate models assume that plants will be able to absorb atmospheric carbon at a steady rate for decades to come. But if less carbon is sequestered in forests, grasslands, and kelp beds than researchers had predicted, mitigating warming will become even more difficult.
It is a perfect vicious circle, in its perverse logic: we produce plastic (from fossil fuels), the plastic degrades into microplastics, the microplastics reduce the capacity of plants to absorb CO₂, the excess CO₂ accelerates climate change, climate change further stresses ecosystems. We have designed the perfect system to self-destruct.
The health impact goes beyond crops and plants
Microplastics do not just disrupt photosynthesis in agricultural crops. In addition, they have been linked to health problems in humans and other animals. They are associated with an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes in people. They have been shown to hinder growth and reproduction in numerous species.
We are facing a threat that spans the entire spectrum of life on the planet: from microscopic plants to humans, through every link in the food chain. It is a systemic pollutant, in the most literal sense of the word. By contaminating plants, we contaminate everything that feeds on them, in a domino effect that goes all the way back to us.
The most frustrating thing? We created this problem. It is not a meteorite from space, it is not an inevitable natural phenomenon. It is decades of reckless production of disposable plastic, of inadequate waste management, of lack of responsibility on the part of manufacturing companies. It is an entirely human problem, requiring human solutions.
Hope in concrete numbers
The new study also offers a glimmer of hope, but calls for immediate action. The research team estimates that By reducing the amount of plastic particles currently in the environment by just 13%, the loss of photosynthesis could be mitigated by 30%. A little effort for a big result.
Efforts to develop an international agreement on plastics have been underway since 2017. But the most recent United Nations-led negotiations, held in Busan, South Korea, they ended without a resolution. And that drives me crazy. To pay the gun lobby money is found immediately: and in the meantime, agricultural crops continue to suffer, microplastics continue to accumulate, the problem gets worse every day.
We cannot afford to wait for all countries to agree. We must act now, individually, at community, at national level. Reduce the use of single-use plastic, improve collection and recycling systems, invest in biodegradable alternatives. These are all actions we can take while international diplomacy slowly takes its course.
An uncertain future for global agricultural crops
I often wonder what the world will be like in 25 years, when my grandchildren are young adults. Reading studies like this one, the picture that comes to mind is anything but reassuring. I imagine less stocked supermarket shelves, skyrocketing food prices, and growing social tensions over access to food resources.
Reduction of agricultural yields by 4-13,5% It may seem manageable for rich countries, but for communities already on the margins of food security it would represent a catastrophe. And let's not forget the impact on the livestock that feed on these crops, adding another layer of complexity and potential loss. What really puzzles me is how we continue to treat this as a “possible” future threat, when in reality it is already underway. Microplastics are already in our fields, in our waters, in our bodies. Photosynthesis is already compromised. We are not talking about preventing a problem; we are talking about mitigating an ongoing disaster.
The urgency of a change of direction
The time for half measures has long since ended. We need to a global treaty on plastics with binding and ambitious targets. We need to completely rethink our relationship with disposable materials. We need massive investments in research into sustainable alternatives and technologies to remove microplastics already present in the environment.
But most of all, we need a change of mentality. To stop thinking of plastic as a convenient material and start seeing it as what it has become: an existential threat to our agricultural crops and life as we know it. What's the point of worrying aboutartificial intelligence, the space, cryptocurrencies, when we might not have enough food to put on our plates? Why are we investing billions in luxury technologies while our food system is being silently sabotaged? from particles smaller than a grain of sand?
The circularity of an announced destiny
Ironically, the same plastic particles now threatening our agricultural crops often come from products designed for agriculture: plastic greenhouse sheeting, irrigation systems, fertilizer and pesticide packaging. It's as if the snake was eating its own tail. Modern, plastic-dependent agriculture is poisoning its own ability to produce food.
The image on the “cover” of this article comes to mind: plastic sheeting surrounding young zucchini plants. A common practice in agriculture, designed to protect crops, but which could slowly poison them. How much cruel irony is there in this? Protect to destroy. Microplastics, unlike us, make no noise. They are the perfect enemy: invisible, patient, implacable. And now we know that they are slowly but surely turning off the light of photosynthesis that fuels our crops.
Let's go back to those politicians in the first paragraph, those "too busy with toy soldiers". Maybe they should remember that all the weapons in the world are useless if there is no food to eat. That all geopolitical strategies collapse in the face of starving populations. That all the accumulated wealth cannot buy healthy crops in a poisoned world. And I wonder how many of them are actually listening to the scientists who warn us of this silent threat to our agricultural crops. I wonder how many of them have the courage to stand up to the big plastic companies instead of receiving their campaign funding.
And so, as large pieces of plastic in the environment continue to degrade into microplastics, the countdown to our harvests has already begun. The question is no longer “if” but “how badly” we will be affected. And the answer, sadly, seems to be: much more than we dare imagine.
