Aspolylactate plastic (PLA)degradationis unsatisfactory in the mesophilic anaerobic fermentation process,this work aimed to unveil the influence of PLA on the characteristics of food waste acidogenic fermentation and enhance the volatile fatty acids (VFAs) production as well as PLA degradation by hydrothermal treatment. The addition of PLA slightly increased the VFAs yield by 6.05 %, while its mass loss rate was only 1.09 % after 12 d fermentation. Hydrothermal treatment could effectively promote the PLA degradation and the dissolution of organic matter in PLA-containing food waste, and 160 °C as well as 40 and 60 min were the ideal hydrothermal conditions with high PLA degradation rate (more than 86 %) and soluble organic materials. In addition, VFAs production from PLA-containing food waste was significantly enhanced by hydrothermal treatment. The maximum yield was obtained under the condition of 160 °C and 60 min, which was 110.06 % higher than the blank group. Moreover, the fermentation time was shortened from 10 d to 4 d.