The pollution arising from plastic refuse at sea is not only a question of the plastic itself but also of the bacteria and chemicals that cover the plastic, according to researchers from the Institute for Agriculture and Fisheries Research (ILVO) in Ostend, Belgium. On samples of plastic waste, ILVO has found over 250 kinds of chemicals and a specific community of bacteria, some of which can cause disease. Animals such as shrimp and sprat swallow microscopic pieces of plastic and are thus exposed to toxic substances and bacteria. The entry of these chemicals and the resulting diseases could effect the entire marine food chain.