Tea is a pretty simple idea. Take some leaves, flowers, fruits or spices. Add water. Give them a little time. Enjoy. At no point in that process does a plastic tea bag seem particularly essential. Yet millions of people brew their tea in bags made partly or entirely from plastic-based materials, often without even knowing it. So what's actually going on? And more importantly, should we be worried?
1. Not all tea bags are created equal
First, a little clarification. Not every tea bag contains the same materials. Some are made primarily from paper fibres. Others use nylon, polypropylene or plastic-based mesh. Some paper-style bags also use polymer materials in their heat seals or coatings.
And terms like biodegradable don't necessarily mean plastic-free.
The problem is that most people can't tell what their tea bag is made from just by looking at it. A silky pyramid bag might look premium, but its appearance tells you surprisingly little about its composition. Which brings us to the science.
2. What does the research actually say?
In 2019, researchers at McGill University published a study reporting that plastic tea bags released large numbers of microscopic particles when exposed to hot water. The findings attracted enormous attention. And understandably so. Nobody particularly likes the idea of adding microscopic plastic particles to their afternoon drink. But science doesn't stop at one study.
In 2025, Germany's Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) published a detailed criticism of the original research. According to its assessment, methodological problems had probably led to substantial overestimation of the number of microplastic particles. Some materials counted as particles may actually have been dissolved substances that became visible during sample preparation.
In other words, those dramatic early numbers shouldn't be treated as settled facts. However, the subject hasn't disappeared. Research from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, published in 2024, identified micro- and nanoscale particles released during the preparation of certain commercial tea bags.
And a study published in npj Science of Food in October 2026 compared bagged and loose tea products, finding substantially more microplastic particles in the infusions prepared using the plastic tea bags tested.
So, where does that leave us?
Some tea-bag materials can contribute plastic particles to brewed tea. But the amount varies, the methods of measurement matter and the science is still developing.
Not exactly the kind of sentence that makes a sensational headline. But a much more useful one.
3. Does that mean microplastics in tea are dangerous?
Here's where we need to separate two very different questions.
Can microplastic particles be present in a drink?
Yes. Researchers have detected them in tea and numerous other foods and beverages.
Does drinking tea containing those particles cause measurable harm to human health?
That's much less certain. Scientists are still investigating how different particle sizes, materials and exposure levels may affect the human body. The BfR's 2025 assessment concluded that harmful effects from microplastics in food were unlikely based on the evidence then available, while also acknowledging important gaps in knowledge. Research continues, and those uncertainties deserve proper investigation.
What they don't deserve is an exaggerated promise that changing your tea will somehow transform your health. That's not our argument. Our argument is considerably simpler.
If you don't need to put a plastic tea bag in hot water, why bother?
4. What about loose-leaf tea?
Loose-leaf tea removes one particular element from the brewing process: the disposable tea bag. Instead, you can prepare your tea using a reusable stainless-steel infuser, a glass teapot with a suitable filter or another brewing method that lets you separate the leaves from the water. That doesn't mean loose-leaf tea is guaranteed to contain zero microplastics.
Microplastics can enter food and beverages through different environmental and production pathways. And loose-leaf products still require packaging, transportation and processing. At RascalTea, we don't pretend that selling loose leaf makes the entire supply chain plastic-free. We simply prefer not to add an unnecessary plastic-based bag to the brewing process. There's also another reason we love loose leaf. Flavour.
5. Better tea starts with better ingredients
A good blend should have something worth looking at. Whole or cut leaves. Visible fruit pieces. Aromatic spices. Flowers that actually contribute to the cup. With loose leaf, you can see what you're brewing, measure the quantity you want and give the ingredients enough space to infuse. That doesn't mean every loose-leaf tea is automatically better than every bagged tea.
Quality still depends on the ingredients, their freshness, the blend and how it's prepared. But loose leaf gives you more control and makes it easier to appreciate what goes into your cup. No mystery pouch required.
6. Keep the tea. Skip the unnecessary extras.
We're not interested in turning a cup of tea into another thing to worry about. The scientific questions around microplastics are important, and researchers are right to keep investigating them. But enjoying good tea shouldn't require complicated promises or dramatic scare stories. At RascalTea, we choose loose leaf because we love the ingredients, the flavour and the freedom to brew exactly how we like.
And because we'd rather give the leaves room to do their thing than squeeze them into a plastic-based bag. Simple as that.
Loose leaf. No apologies.
