Ziploc facing class action lawsuit over alleged undisclosed microplastics

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Yahoo! News/USA Today

Mon, May 12, 2025 at 12:41 p.m. EDT


A California woman is suing S.C. Johnson, the maker of Ziploc, because she says some of its products contain undisclosed microplastics that mislead and harm consumers.

Linda Cheslow of Santa Rosa, California, filed a class action complaint in U.S. District Court for Northern California on April 25, according to court records.

Cheslow's complaint alleges that some Ziploc products marketed as microwave or freezer safe release microplastics when they are microwaved or frozen, making them "fundamentally unfit" for their advertised use.

It called S.C. Johnson's alleged misrepresentation "unfair, unlawful, deceptive and misleading." The lawsuit is a class action, meaning it has been filed on behalf of anyone around the country who has purchased the products. USA TODAY has reached out to S.C. Johnson for comment.

Read more: https://ca.news.yahoo.com/ziploc-facing-class-action-lawsuit-164135099.html?guccounter=1

[multigraincracker]

1. Need to go after Exxon.

Biggest producer of plastics. Deep pockets.

[BigmanPigman]

2. I read a few weeks ago that take out containers

from restaurants made of plastic are harmful when used to reheat food in a microwave. This is going to be a huge lawsuit.

My great uncle was a doctor who did research at on of NYC's hospitals and in the 1980s he told family members not to use plastic bags for food since it was not safe. He lived to be 93 but he was the youngest of the 4 siblings and the first to die. They all lived a long time.

[vapor2]

3. what does anyone suggest to freeze food?

[BigmanPigman]

5. Good question, I'd like the answer myself.

[womanofthehills]

6. I freeze in Pyrex or similar bowls

https://a.co/d/hWG5Y1J

[jmowreader]

7. Butcher paper, if the food is solid...

...like meats or vegetables.

Glass containers for fluid foods like stews.

[BumRushDaShow]

9. Butcher paper was mentioned and "freezer paper" is similar - both have a "coating"

I would think wax paper might be another option where if the food was solid, it could be wrapped in that and then put in the plastic container.

I normally use one of those "food saver" type machines that have sealable plastic bags and am not sure if anyone has actually tested those.

But I have actually frozen stuff in foil pans and wrapped them in aluminum foil. Some packs of foil pans come with cardboard "lids". You can do solids and semi-solids (like casseroles, etc) in those.

[BadgerKid]

10. Avoiding plastic of any kind in a microwave

or around high-heat sourcss is probably the safest way to go.

[pandr32]

4. This is a very big deal.

All of us are exposed to and ingesting microplastics. It affects our health.

[FBaggins]

8. Not really

It could be a big deal if it’s true.- but an individual claiming something in court does not mean that it’s true.

The plaintiff in this case isn’t a consumer safety organization with decades of research and expertise behind the claim. She seems more like someone trying to get “go away money” from a big company to avoid bad press.

She’s spent the last several years suing a huge candy company because their bags of white chips (which nowhere claim to be white chocolate) are guilty of false advertising because they aren’t real white chocolate… but she still hasn’t gotten to trial.

[FakeNoose]

11. The fact is that Americans love convenience

... I know I do. I use plastic bags like Ziploc, also plastic take-out containers, to store food in my refrigerator. But this is for temporary storage only, and never for reheating the same food in a microwave.

The danger of microplastics occurs mainly when the foods are frozen for a long period and then taken out and thawed in the same plastic container. When Ziploc bags came into wide use many years ago, I began to notice that my frozen foods took on a "plastic" taste even though the food wasn't spoiled. To me it was proof enough that plastic isn't safe, especially when thawing and reheating the frozen food.