Finding a plastic wrap that really works, sealing properly or even better tight, easy to cut to size all that without shriveling can be challenging.
Tiffany Martini (Chow) tries to get an answer to How Does Plastic Wrap Clings by putting the nagging question to Clair Hicks, Professor of Food Science at the University of Kentucky.
In Experiment of the Week – Static Cling? #269 (Teachers Corner) the conclusion is that "most kitchen plastic wrap is made of low density polyethylene, also known as LDPE. This plastic makes a good barrier to water and air, but it does not stick to itself. To make it cling, they add another chemical, such as polyisobutylene or poly[ethylene-vinylacetate]. These chemicals do not mix totally with the LDPE. Instead, they act like the adhesive on tape, only not as sticky, and it only sticks to certain things".
As for the Mindful Momma, in Plastic Wrap 101, her focus is on the greener brands.
In the worriers corner, E:The Environmental Magazine published The perils of plastic: your cling wrap could be leaching chemicals – Your Health way back in September of 2003.
Related bit: Reynolds Plastic Wrap with EZ Slide Cutter, a consumer product I love