Microplastic presence in dried and fresh fish from seafood markets in Sri Lanka

Nina Wootton; Vinuri Silva; Danielle Giuretis; Patrick Reis-Santos; Bronwyn M. Gillanders

doi:10.1071/MF24270

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

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Microplastic presence in dried and fresh fish from seafood markets in Sri Lanka

Nina Wootton

^A ^# ^* , Vinuri Silva ^A ^# , Danielle Giuretis ^A , Patrick Reis-Santos

^A and Bronwyn M. Gillanders ^A

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Southern Seas Ecology Laboratories, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia.

^* Correspondence to: nina.wootton@adelaide.edu.au

^# Joint first authorship

Handling Editor: Haseeb Randhawa

Marine and Freshwater Research 76, MF24270 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF24270

Submitted: 28 November 2024 Accepted: 18 December 2024 Published: 23 January 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Context

Microplastics have been found in aquatic ecosystems globally, including in many marine organisms. Despite this, understanding the occurrence of microplastics in seafood products prepared for human consumption has received less attention.

Aims

This study aims to determine the abundance and type of microplastic in dried and fresh fish purchased from seafood markets.

Methods

Four locally harvested species of anchovies and sardines were sampled from seafood markets across Sri Lanka. These pelagic species are popular seafood items and are commonly consumed whole. We analysed fresh (gastrointestinal tracts and whole body) and dried fish (whole body) under the microscope for microplastic presence (>38 μm, <5 mm), followed by polymer validation.

Key results

Across all fish sampled (N = 215), 82.3% had microplastic (3.64 ± 0.26 microplastics per individual), with fibre-shaped pieces making up more than 95% of all microplastic particles. Overall, contamination was higher in fresh fish than in whole dried fish. And, acrylic resin was the most common polymer.

Conclusions

Microplastics were found in nearly all fresh fish and almost half the dry fish from Sri Lanka, confirming the pervasive nature of microplastic contamination.

Implications

Differences in contamination levels in popular seafood products demonstrate how preparation and consumption habits can influence microplastic intake.

Keywords: contamination, fish, food source, marine debris, microplastic, plastic pollution, seafood, Sri Lanka.

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