From our air to water, soil, and, increasingly, our food, microplastics have quietly entered almost each and every corner of our lives. Cooking, being a deeply cultural and everyday ritual in most Indian households, faces an especially unsettling feeling with plastic entering meals. Yet, mounting research has shown that microplastics are making their entry inside common ingredients and utensils featuring in typical Indian kitchens.
This article decodes how microplastics infiltrate Indian cooking, what the health risks may be, and how you can reduce the exposure without giving up your favorite foods.
What Are Microplastics, and Why Are They Everywhere?
Microplastics are plastic particles less than 5 mm in size. They originate from the following sources: Primary sources: microbeads in cosmetics, industrial pellets. Secondary sources: breakdown of larger plastics (bags, bottles, packaging)
Due to the fact that India is among the largest consumers of plastic in the world, especially the single-use varieties, microplastics easily enter the environment and food chain.
How Microplastics Enter Everyday Indian Cooking
Contaminated Ingredients:
Several staples may contain microplastics: Rice and wheat can absorb particles during cultivation or storage. Sea salt the world over, including in India, has evidence of containing microplastics. Fish and a variety of seafood, especially from polluted coasts, carry plastics ingested from the ocean.
Indian examples: Prawns in coastal kitchens, Masala powders preserved in plastic packets, Packaged dals and grains moved using plastic sacks.
Plastic Utensils and Containers:
Indian households widely use: Plastic ladles for hot curries, Melamine plates, Microwave-safe plastic containers, Bottles for storing ghee, oil, pickles.
When heated, scratched, or old, these release microplastics and chemical additives such as BPA and phthalates.
High-risk practices: Stir-frying sabzi with plastic spatulas, Storing hot rasam or dal in plastic bowls, Reusing old plastic oil bottles.
Heat + Plastic = More Shedding:
Indian cooking uses high heat, tadka, deep frying, and pressure cooking. This drastically increases the release of microplastics from: Plastic strainers used for rice, Non-food-grade plastic water bottles near heat, Nylon mesh ladles used for frying.
Packaged Food and Delivery Culture:
With rising food delivery across Indian cities: Meals arrive in plastic containers, Hot biryanis or gravies are particularly prone to leaching. Even “eco-friendly” packaging may be coated with plastic lining.
Possible Health Risks Linked to Microplastics:
The research is still ongoing but so far the preliminary findings are:
Organ Inflammation and Tissue Damage: Microplastics can irritate our organs as they build up in our bodies over time.
Hormone Disruption: Chemicals like BPA are present in microplastics and will mimic a "hormonal" action on our bodies. These chemicals can negatively affect the thyroid, reproduction, and child growth and development.
Gut Microbiome Imbalance: Microplastics have the potential to upset the good bacteria in our gut. Many people in India find this very disturbing because their diets typically include digestive-supporting foods like curds and yogurt, fermented batter or dosa, and pickles.
Heavy Metal Transfers by Microplastics: Microplastics can absorb some of the water-soluble toxic metals found in India's contaminated water supplies.
Reducing Microplastic Exposure in Indian Cooking: Simple Fixes
How to Reduce Exposure to Microplastics Through Traditional Indian Cooking, There Are Easy Solutions:
- Use wooden or stainless steel spoons/ladles/utensils for cooking with instead of plastic.
- Use metal or glass containers for food storage rather than plastic.
- Do not put hot food directly into plastic containers after cooking.
- Whenever possible, buy unpolished rice and organic whole grains.
- Always rinse packaged dal(s) and rice prior to cooking and using.
- Try to limit reheating cooked food items stored in plastic containers.
- Whenever possible, buy whole spices that have been ground “on the spot” versus heavily packaged mixtures or “masalas”.
- When using delivery services to bring you food products, request to receive your orders packaged in either paper or compostable materials.
Health Implications of Using Certain Plastics, Non-Stick Coatings, and Packaging in Traditional Indian Cooking and Storage:
Traditional Indian cuisine is made with high heat, slow simmering, and storage of leftovers in metallic dabbas. However, over the last few decades, plastics and modern nonstick cookware have increasingly replaced traditional ones, raising questions about long-term health impacts.
Plastics in Food Storage:
Plastic containers are used for storing curries, pickles, and snacks in many households. Exposure of some plastic containers to heat (e.g., heat from microwaves or hot food) can lead to the release of chemicals, including bisphenol A (BPA), phthalates, or microplastics, into food. These chemical have been shown in numerous scientific studies to disrupt the endocrine system and cause metabolic problems. In addition to greatly reducing the potential for contamination from creating or using non-plastic containers for hot or fatty foods, using steel or glass will help to protect your food from heat-induced plastic degradation.
Non-Stick Coatings in High-Heat Cooking:
Non-stick cookware is very convenient for dosas, omelettes, and low-oil tadkas. Older or damaged pans can leach particles from their coating into your food. Excessive heating, as often happens with Indian cooking styles like tadka, can also degrade the coating and release fumes. While modern PFOA-free pans are safe, their life still requires gentle use and replacement when scratched.
Packaging for Groceries and Takeaway Foods:
Most of the single-use plastics and packaging coming from markets or delivery services are not rated for direct food contact. They should not be used for serving hot samosas, fried items, or for heating because it results in chemical leaching. Similarly, paper packaging lined with low-grade plastic poses similar issues. Transferring food into clean steel or ceramic containers is a better proposition.
Returning to Durable, Traditional Materials:
Conventionally, Indian households made use of stainless steel, brass, earthenware, and glass-materials that are still among the safest for storing and cooking food. These resist chemical leachage, withstand heat, and are long-lasting as well. Readopting them, even partially, reduces exposure to synthetic chemicals in addition to the environmental benefits of sustainable kitchens.
Case Study:
Relevant initiatives in Mumbai/Delhi on plastic → sustainable food packaging/tiffin:
Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)’s push to replace plastic tiffins with steel containers:
In 2022, BMC proposed to its local food-delivery and restaurant associations that instead of single-use plastic containers for takeaways/home delivery, restaurants should switch over to steel tiffin boxes (reusable) or other environmentally friendly alternatives. The shift is positioned not just as a regulatory compliance, plastic ban, but as a one-time investment for restaurants, that is, a structural change from plastic disposables to reusable containers. Reason: the plastic packaging - tiffin boxes, bags, disposable cutlery, etc. - generally ends up as garbage, clogging the drains or landfills, whereas steel containers are reusable and more eco-friendly.
Zomato's Plastic-Free Future Programme:
In 2024/2025, Zomato introduced this initiative with an aim to incentivize its partner restaurants to use sustainable (plastic-free) packaging for food delivery. More than 200 restaurant brands reportedly joined across 30+ cities by providing evidence (photos, certificates) that they have shifted to plastic-free packaging.
The program also helped spotlight and scale new packaging solutions — e.g., compostable, biodegradable containers, instead of conventional plastic, that can handle Indian cuisines with gravies, curries, etc.
Recently, some Indian media pieces have emphasised that replacing plastic tiffins with eco-friendly alternatives such as steel, glass, ceramic, etc., is not just about the environment, also about health, hygiene, food safety, and better temperature retention.
The argument is that many plastic containers, especially “black plastic” food containers commonly used for delivery, raise concerns: they may be made from recycled or unknown plastic waste, may leach harmful substances (e.g., flame retardants, heavy metals), may not recycle properly, and therefore pose long-term health and environmental risk.
Microplastics have become an unavoidable modern reality, but they don’t have to dominate your plate. By understanding where they come from and making small, practical changes in the kitchen, Indian households can significantly lower exposure and protect long-term health. The shift toward plastic containers, non-stick cookware, and disposable packaging has introduced potential health risks not present with traditional materials. Mindful choices, such as avoiding heating food in plastic, replacing damaged non-stick pans, and prioritizing steel or glass, can help preserve both the integrity of Indian cooking and long-term well-being.
References: