Globowl pushes baby food brands to ditch pouches after Greenpeace microplastics report

By AI, Created 1:15 PM UTC, May 25, 2026, /AGP/ – A Greenpeace International report found more than 11,000 microplastic particles in a single baby food pouch, prompting Globowl CEO Erica Bethe Levin to urge the industry to move back to glass. Globowl, founded in 2020, says its glass-only model shows safer packaging was still possible as pouch sales grew to 60% of U.S. baby food sales by 2023.

Why it matters: - Baby food packaging is now under sharper scrutiny as new testing points to microplastic contamination inside pouches marketed to parents as convenient and safe. - The findings could pressure baby food brands, regulators and retailers to rethink packaging materials, not just ingredient labels. - Globowl is using the report to argue that packaging safety is now part of the baby-food value proposition.

What happened: - Greenpeace International released a report last week on microplastics in baby food pouches. - Testing by Norwegian lab SINTEF Ocean found more than 11,000 microplastic particles in a single pouch and up to 99 particles per gram of food. - The lab also detected a probable endocrine disruptor migrating from the packaging into the food. - The pouches were tested at room temperature. - Globowl CEO Erica Bethe Levin called on baby food brands to publish a transition plan to glass. - Globowl has shipped baby food in glass jars since the company launched in 2020.

The details: - SINTEF Ocean linked the contamination to the polyethylene lining that sits against the food and the plastic spout babies suck on. - The tested products carried labels such as “organic,” “BPA-free” and “non-GMO.” - Those labels do not cover packaging materials. - Major brands said their products meet current regulations. - Current regulations do not address microplastic migration from food packaging. - The baby food market in the U.S. shifted heavily toward pouches after around 2010. - By 2023, pouches accounted for 60% of U.S. baby food sales, up from 6%. - That change reflected a 900% shift in 13 years. - The pouch format became dominant because it is cheaper to manufacture, cheaper to ship and lasts longer on shelves. - Globowl sells internationally inspired baby and toddler meals in more than 300 U.S. retail locations. - Those locations include 72 Fresh Thyme stores. - Globowl also sells through Amazon, Thrive Market, Buy Buy Baby and Globowl.com. - Globowl says its recipes are developed with James Beard- and Michelin-recognized chefs and supported by a board of pediatricians and pediatric experts. - Levin is a Tory Burch Foundation Fellow, a Target Accelerator graduate and a Medill-trained journalist who spent 20 years as a food writer before starting Globowl.

Between the lines: - The report gives critics of pouch packaging a concrete health argument, not just an environmental one. - Globowl is positioning its glass packaging as a differentiator in a category where convenience has often outweighed packaging safety. - Levin’s challenge to competitors is also a business pitch: the glass supply chain already exists, so the barrier is less about invention than willingness to absorb higher costs. - The company is framing the issue as a child-safety tradeoff, not a consumer preference debate.

What’s next: - Globowl wants other baby food brands to publish plans to move from pouches back to glass. - Levin said she will meet with any company that wants to understand the cost and mechanics of the switch. - Levin said she can speak publicly about the Greenpeace findings, the economics of the pouch shift, the federal STOMP microplastics program, pending legislation including the Microplastics Safety Act and steps parents using pouches can take now. - Globowl is continuing to market glass-packaged baby food as the only new baby food brand launched in glass during the pouch era.

The bottom line: - The Greenpeace findings turned baby food packaging into a public-health debate, and Globowl is trying to turn that moment into an industry reset.