National workshop on “Microplastics in seafood value chain : Challenges and way forward” was organized at ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Cochin In connection with Swachh Pakhwada.  The Workshop was  presided by Dr George Ninan, Director, ICAR CIFT, Cochin. Chief guest of the programme, Mr Alex Ninan, Regional President, Seafood Exporters Association of India & Chairman of Baby Marine International stressed that microplastic in environment is a critical issue which should be addressed and the R&D sector has a collective role to play in devising response mechanisms.

The term Plastisphere refers to an ecosystem that has evolved over years and which has led us live in human-made plastic environment. Microplastics are small sized plastic ranging below 5 mm which are of serious environmental concern as it pollutes land, air and water. It is said that 8 million tonnes of plastic enter the sea through a network of waterways which gets polluted due to human activities with plastic load. Bigger plastic items degrade into microplastic as a result of weathering and can adhere into skin or translocate to other tissues of fish. Plastic from fishing gear and abandoned fishing nets damage the sensitive ecosystems like corals, mangrove, seaweeds, etc. and contribute to generation of microplastics at sea.

During the Workshop, Dr Ranjith K., Professor, KUFOS, Dr Martin Xavier, and Dr Manjulekshmi, Senior scientists of ICAR CIFT spoke on various  topics and the work carried out in the area of research on microplastics. The Workshop concluded with a panel discussion during which the scientists, leading exporters and representatives from various Government agencies in the sector interacted to formulate management guidelines to tackle the issue of microplastic pollution.