Broadcast on February 2 at 8:50 p.m. on France 5
It had everything to please: light, flexible, inexpensive, etc. The manufacture of plastic became widespread in the 1950s to protect food from deterioration. But now, NGOs are warning about the threat it represents for the planet. In 2019, a WWF study revealed that a third of plastic waste produced is found in nature – that is 100 million tonnes in 2016. Beyond the ecological disaster it causes, this petroleum derivative is also a danger to our health. Indeed, it releases chemical components in contact with our food, to the point that each individual ingests about five grams of microplastics each week, according to the WWF report. In addition, in PVC pipes, it can contaminate drinking water by decomposing into vinyl chloride, a toxic substance. In other words, “There is nothing fantastic about plastic anymore “, as summarized in this documentary by Ludivine Favrel. µAnother source of concern: the lure of recycling. According to Statbel figures, only 42.1% of plastic packaging waste was recycled in Belgium in 2018. Globally, this figure drops to just 9%, according to Greenpeace. Some experts even foresee in the future a geological era of plastic, “plasticene”, as this material will have permeated our environment. But these facts, as dramatic and depressing as they are, must not give way to fatalism. As consumers, everyone has a role to play in eliminating plastic from their daily lives – this is what this report shows, which sets out to meet a family determined to avoid unnecessary packaging as much as possible when shopping. in bulk. Through this survey, the zero waste movement has finally seen its label of bobo fad withdrawn to endorse what it really is: a fundamental public health issue.
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