According to their study, which examined previous research on plastic bottles conducted around the world, the researchers looked into the migration potential of 193 food contact chemicals. They established that 150 migrated from recycled bottles into food.
"We found these chemicals can come from various sources, such as the catalysts and additives used during production and degradation during PET production, and degradation that can happen across a bottle's lifecycle", said Dr Eleni Iacovidou, a lecturer from Brunel's Centre for Pollution Research and Policy, and lead author of the study.
A so-called "super cleaning" process, involving cleansing plastic before recycling with a high-temperature wash, a gas wash, and a chemical wash, is another way to solve the problem. At the same time, researchers note that the ultimate solution is to end the use of PET.
"We all have a responsibility to bear. We need to start thinking about how to prevent the use of PET bottles in our households by investing, for example, in water filters, or large water containers and learning how to dispose of our plastic waste properly. If we reduce our consumption of PET then we will drive change further up the system. Less demand equals less production in the first place", Dr Eleni Iacovidou said.