Why you should get rid of your black plastic spatula immediately

If you have a black spatula in your kitchen, or other black plastic items around your house like takeout containers or children’s toys, they could contain high levels of toxic flame retardants.

Those chemicals—which have been linked to cancer, neurological damage, and hormone disruption—may be a result of recycling contamination, specifically from electronics, the authors of a recent study theorize.

Scientists from Toxic-Free Future and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam tested a range of household items made of black plastic and sold in the U.S., and found toxic flame retardants in many of them. The highest levels were found in a spatula, a sushi tray, and a beaded necklace. The results were published in the journal Chemosphere in early October.

“These cancer-causing chemicals shouldn’t be used to begin with, but with recycling, they are entering our environment and our homes in more ways than one,” Megan Liu, study coauthor and science and policy manager at Toxic-Free Future, said in a statement. “The high levels we found are concerning.”

Electronics recycling and flame retardants

Plastics typically used in electronics contain higher levels of toxic flame retardants than other types of plastics (like nylon), the researchers found. That led them to hypothesize that the flame retardants were present in those household items because of mismanaged e-waste recycling, in which electronics are contaminating other plastics.

In a 2018 paper, Andrew Turner, a biochemist at the University of Plymouth, wrote that “there is mounting evidence that the demand for black plastics in consumer products is partly met” by electronics, specifically their plastic housings. When these items are recycled, the contaminated plastic could make its way into household products because of “dirty” recycling streams. Recycling is also often done in other countries without strict regulations, The Atlantic noted.

Electronics like TVs and computers have often been covered in plastic that’s treated with flame retardants so they don’t catch on fire. That’s beginning to change: In December 2024, a New York ban will go into effect on “organohalogen flame retardants,” also called OFRs, in plastic enclosures for electronic displays such as TVs. Beginning January 2025, Washington will ban such flame retardants in plastic enclosures for all indoor electronics.

Some flame retardants have also long been banned; In 2021, the EPA fully banned a flame retardant called decabromodiphenyl ether, or decaBDE. But the Chemosphere study specifically found decaBDE. A black sushi tray they tested contained 11,900 parts per million of that chemical. European Union regulation limits decaDBE to 10 parts per million. One separate toxicologist told CNN that it’s “especially concerning that they found retardants that aren’t supposed to be used anymore.”

Flame retardants in household items

When toxic flame retardants are found in household items, we’re at risk of exposure. The flame retardants in spatulas are especially concerning, experts say, because they can easily enter our food. The Atlantic points to a 2018 paper that found flame retardants in black kitchen utensils transferred into hot cooking oil. Heating the plastic encourages chemicals to leach out and into food; the same goes heating black plastic food containers.

If flame retardants are in children’s toys, or items like the plastic beaded necklace, they could get into kids’ saliva. Other studies have also found that flame retardants can transfer from products to the dust and air in our homes.

Flame retardants aren’t only in black plastics or electronics, either. Studies have found these toxic chemicals in couches, car interiors, food items, baby products, and so on. And they aren’t the only toxins we’re being exposed to by everyday items. Plastics contain thousands of toxic chemicals that have been known to cause cancer or damage organs. PFAS, so-called forever chemicals, have been linked to increased risk of cancer, decreased fertility, developmental delays, and other health impacts—and have been found in everything from nonstick pans to makeup to toilet paper.

The evidence of flame retardants in black plastic household items points to the need for more regulations on plastic production, bans on hazardous chemicals in plastic, and stronger policies around plastic recycling like through the Global Plastics Treaty, according to Toxic-Free Future.

If you have kitchen utensils made of black plastic, experts suggest replacing them with stainless steel or wood. (For the plastic versions, you may not even know they’re made of recycled plastic; many of the more than 200 items tested weren’t labeled as made of recycled materials).

“As businesses introduce more and more recycled materials into everyday products, retailers must require suppliers to test them to ensure toxic chemicals aren’t hiding in these recycled plastics,” said Mike Schade, director of Toxic-Free Future’s Mind the Store retailer program, in a statement.