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Agricultural plastic products are mostly single use and can persist in the environment long after their intended use, threatening food safety and potentially human health. A new FAO report provides irrefutable evidence to support action towards the better management of plastics in agrifood systems.

As more new chemicals occur in the environment there is a growing need for reference standards to be able to assess toxicity, set limits and develop policies.

Biochar is well known for its positive effect on treating polluted soils, but on the other hand a negative impact on biota in the soil can be observed also. 

The study takes a closer look at leaching and retention of PFAS from contaminated soils collected in the field and tested under different rainfall conditions.

Research shows that bacteria can aid in the biodegradation of microplastics in soils and that the result can be boosted with microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation.

Study led by the EU Soil Observatory establishes an initial EU baseline and project a future assessment of the effectiveness of EU policies and regulations targeting pesticides use and soil pollution.

Homegrown eggs from free-ranging laying hens often contain elevated concentrations of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs). A recent study from the University of Antwerp (Flanders, Belgium) provides insights into how (a)biotic factors affect the bioavailability to eggs.

The NORMAN network provides guidance on performing high quality non-target screening (NTS) studies and data interpretation while increasing awareness of the promise but also pitfalls and challenges associated with these techniques.

The production and use of chemicals can lead to the release of toxic compounds. If these end up in water or soil, they can harm the environment. The more chemicals enter the environment, the greater the so-called toxic pressure.

Quantifying PFAS that are prevalent indoors and estimating their exposure risk to humans are important as people tend to spend 90% of their time indoor. To accurately measure these compounds indoors, polyethylene (PE) sheets were employed and validated as passive detection tools and analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry.