Is it Safe to Microwave Plastic Wrap on Your Foods?

Sharon Palmer RD

Published on November 2, 2024

Can you microwave plastic wrap? Is it safe to microwave plastic wrap for food? I’m answering your top questions on the potential risks of heating plastic food wrap in my Ask Sharon feature, plus I’m offering my top eight products to reduce plastic in your kitchen.

It’s super convenient to apply a thin film of plastic wrap over your dinner plate filled with veggie lasagna before you pop it into the microwave to heat. After all, you’ll get no messy splatters or explosions in the microwave, which means less cleanup later. But how safe is it to microwave plastic wrap on your food dishes? Indeed, many people have concerns over the potential safety risks of microwaving foods with plastics because harmful chemicals may migrate from the plastics into the foods during the heating process. Over the past few years, more and more research points to health concerns over plastics in our environment, especially in our food system. While concerns over plastic apply to all sorts of food grade plastics, including microwave safe plastic trays, plastic mugs, food packaging, and plastic beverage bottles, what is the particular risk as it relates to plastic food wrap? What are alternatives for microwaving food safely without using plastic wrap? I’m answering your top questions below. Learn more about reducing plastic in your kitchen here.

Question: What Is in Food Plastic Wrap?

Sharon’s Answer:

Plastic wraps were traditionally made from polyvinylidene chloride, with movement in the industry to use low-density polyethylene materials, which are considered safer. Plasticizers from polyvinylidene chloride have been largely phased out in plastic wrap due to environmental and health concerns, though it still may be found in some packaging where it’s usually combined with other ingredients. Low-density polyethylene is a thermoplastic that is used in different plastic products, including plastic trays, snap-on lids, beverage containers, and plastic wraps. Sometimes manufacturers add additional ingredients, such as biofilms, to plastic wrap to increase preservation.

Question: How are plastic food wraps regulated?

Sharon’s Answer:

The Food and Drug Administration regulates packaging and materials that come into contact with food, such as plastic food wrap, through a premarket notification process which involves the manufacturer submitting key data and safety points to demonstrate the material satisfies FDA’s safety requirements. The FDA and USDA recommend that you follow the manufacturer’s instructions for microwaving or heating plastic wraps with food, with further advice that you should avoid plastic wrap touching the food directly during the heating process and also to beware that food wrap can actually melt into the food if the temperature gets high enough.

Question: Can you microwave plastic wrap for food safely?

Sharon’s Answer:

Microwaves brought a revolution for easy meal preparation in home kitchens. However, heating plastics that are in contact with foods and beverages in a microwave (which is not possible with stoves or ovens as it melts) has demonstrated health concerns due to the proximity of the plastics to the food and beverage matrix. Heating plastics allows the chemicals in plastics to migrate into foods and beverages more quickly. This is even a greater concern with foods that contain fat, as this may increase the migration of certain chemicals that are fat soluble.

Two specific plastics in the food system that have brought concerns to toxicologists are phthalates and bisphenols. Long-term exposure to plastics through the leaching of substances, such as phthalates and bisphenol, is of concern because these chemicals are considered to be endocrine-disrupting as they interfere with hormonal actions in the body. Plasticizers used in plastics to give them more flexibility have been linked with potential negative health risks, such as reproductive and developmental disorders. Low-density polyethylene, commonly used in plastic food wrap today, has lower toxicity, but it may contain other contaminants such as phthalates, and it is a major source of microplastics, which are of increasing concern (see below).

*Avoid purchasing bottled water to reduce plastic use.*

Question: What about the safety of plastic overall?

Sharon’s Answer:

One of the biggest issues in our food system today is plastics, in particular, those used in food production and consumption. Plastic is virtually everywhere in the food system: in farming, processing, production, retail, and home kitchen use. Studies have found that bisphenols and phthalates are present in a wide variety of foods, and they also contaminate our environment, including air, water, and soil. Phthalates transfer to foods by heating plastic, but also by simply storing the food or beverage in the plastic. There are other chemicals in plastics that pose concerns beyond bisphenols and phthalates. Microplastics—tiny pieces of plastic that break off and get into our environment, as well as our bodies through food and beverage consumption—are ubiquitous and may be linked with potential health risks. The plastic problem is concerning because growing research links it to health issues, such as endocrine disruption, neurodevelopmental concerns, and metabolic disorders. Children are more vulnerable to health risks compared to adults. Plastic, a petroleum product, is also an environmental nightmare, as less than 9% is recycled and it ends up in landfills and ecosystems, where it breaks down and leeches into water, soil, and air.

*Store food in reusable containers to reduce plastics.*

Question: What’s the safest way to heat foods in the microwave? How can I reduce plastics?

Sharon’s Answer:

While we need to learn a lot more about the safety of plastics in our food system and how these compounds can leech into foods and cause human health concerns, in the meantime you can take the cautious, ecofriendly alternative of microwaving your foods in glass containers without the use of plastic wrap. If you are concerned about food splattering in the microwave, cover the dish with a small plate or loose tea towel for short re-warming periods.

You’re better off reducing the amount of all plastics in the foods and beverages you purchase and your practices in the kitchen for the health of people and the planet. Try alternatives for plastic wrap food coverings, such as parchment paper, tea towels, beeswax food wraps (some are made with cotton and not beeswax), and reusable cloth food covers.