These tiny little fruit stickers are not tiny little problems

An official South Australian estimate says 5.62 billion plastic produce stickers enter the Australian produce supply chain every year. At an average of just 0.02 grams each, that's more than 112 tonnes of stickers annually...

This is symbolic of a much bigger problem: the creeping, insidious nature of plastic pollution and the way responsibility is shifted away from the companies that create it. These stickers suit supermarkets, packers and automated checkout systems. But the cost is pushed onto composters, councils, gardeners, soil and - eventually - our health.

The evidence is strongest on two things. First, these stickers break down into microplastics, which combined with the forever chemicals in their inks, poison our soils, food systems and health. Second, alternatives already exist. Compostable labels made from cellulose, wood pulp and starch-based materials are technically viable. Laser marking can remove the sticker altogether in some cases. What's missing isn't innovation. It's political will.

So here is what should happen. Governments should legislate a rapid transition away from plastic produce stickers and require certified compostable, non-toxic alternatives wherever labels are still needed. And in the meantime, all of us need to do our best to keep these stickers out of compost and FOGO...