TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Microplastic issue has become a hot topic among the public. A recent research from the State University of New York, Fredonia revealed many brands of bottled water around the world were contaminated with microplastic.

The plastic particles were sized 6.5 micrometers on average or as the size of red blood cells. Even some particle were found at a size of 100 micrometers which equal to a human hair diameter.

The Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) released a clarification notice regarding the research result. In the written statement, BPOM team claimed to keep an eye to the microplastic issue development. The international institution such as European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the US-Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) currently developing a research on the analytical method of toxicology on human health, as said by BPOM.

Read: Microplastic Study Govt to Improve Bottled Water Quality

To date, BPOM stated that no scientific studies have proved the danger of microplastic in a human body. The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) as an institute of risk assessment for food safety under FAO-WHO has yet evaluated the toxicity of plastics and its component.

"Thus, we haven’t set yet a limit of microplastic a person can withstand. Codex as the world food standard agency under FAO-WHO has not regulate yet the microplastic regulation contained in food," stated BPOM in the release.

BPOM assured to keep monitoring the microplastic issues and coordinate with cross-field expertise, academia, ministries, and related institutions and associations from both national and international level.

As for the public, BPOM urged consumers to remain calm because the safety, quality, and nutrition of bottled water (AMDK) circulating in Indonesia have regulated in SNI AMDK (Compulsory SNI) and in Regulation of POM Board, whose standard is in line with the international standard specified in Codex.

“BPOM continues to conduct pre-market and post-market supervision on food safety, quality, and nutrition in accordance with the applied standard," BPOM stated.

Tempo.co