Accumulation of trace elements in cattle from rural and industrial areas in Belgium

Waegeneers, Nadia; Pizzolon, J.-C.; Hoenig, M.; Temmerman, Ludwig De

doi:10.1080/02652030802429096

Cited by 37 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…As shown by Waegeneers et al (2009) this value was exceeded in 75% of the bovine kidneys sampled in contaminated areas. Being aware of the problem, the Belgian federal government has already taken actions, involving, for example, a ban on bringing kidneys of cattle that resided at least 18 months in the contaminated area, into the food chain for human consumption.…”

Section: Exceedance Of the European Mlsmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…The European ML of Cd in bovine kidneys is 1.0 mg kg À1 fresh weight (European Union 2006). This value was exceeded in 75% of the kidneys sampled in contaminated agricultural areas in Belgium, and in 47% of kidneys sampled in uncontaminated areas (Waegeneers et al 2009). The age of the animals might play a role in the large number of samples exceeding the ML, but in previous studies this factor was not taken into account.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Kidneys, livers and meat tissue of 150 bovine animals were sampled in 2005 by the Belgian Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (FASFC) (Waegeneers et al 2009). The samples were collected on the one hand in three metal contaminated areas (A, B and C), and on the other hand in rural areas away from trace element point sources.…”

Section: Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The concentrations have been published in Waegeneers et al (2009). Together with each sample, a copy of the bovine passport was received, containing information on the date of birth and of slaughtering of the animal.…”

Section: Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Cu levels in kidney and Zn levels in liver did not increase with age, while there was a small but significant decrease in hepatic Cu concentrations and an increase in renal Zn concentrations with age (Table 1; R 2 5 0.1). These are probably anomalies due to the negative correlation between the Cu and Cd levels in liver, and the positive correlation between Zn and Cd levels in kidneys (Waegeneers et al 2009). Indeed, Cu and Zn are not expected to accumulate in the body with age because they are essential elements that are homeostatically regulated by alterations in the rate and amount of absorption, distribution and rate of excretion (European Union 2003; Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) 2004).…”

Section: Age Effects In Reference Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The European maximum level for cadmium in bovine kidneys is in Belgium only realistic for cattle up to 2 years of age

Waegeneers

Pizzolon

Hoenig

et al. 2009

Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A

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The effect of animal age on concentrations of cadmium, lead, arsenic, copper and zinc in bovine tissues (meat, kidney and liver) sampled from animals reared in contaminated areas or reference regions in Belgium was investigated. For cadmium concentrations in meat samples analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed an increasing trend with age. In addition, a significant positive linear relation (p 5 0.05) was found between animal age and renal (R 2 ¼ 0.56) or hepatic (R 2 ¼ 0.39) cadmium levels. Lead concentrations in kidneys and liver also increased with age, but the effect was blurred, likely due to the internal remobilization of lead. For the other trace elements (arsenic, copper, zinc) no relationship could be found between their concentration in meat, kidneys or liver and animal age. Renal cadmium concentrations were predicted for bovines at different ages by using the slope of the linear regression equation, and by taking into account its 95% confidence interval. Calculations for 2-year-old animals from reference areas showed that in this group the European maximum level of 1 mg kg À1 for cadmium in kidneys would be exceeded in zero to 5% of cases. If a general rejection percentage of maximum 5% would be desirable for kidneys sampled in the reference areas (according to the ALARA principle -'as low as reasonably achievable' -of European Union policy), then (1) kidneys from animals older than 2 years from the reference areas should a priori not be considered suitable to be placed on the market, or (2) the maximum level for cadmium in kidneys should be increased to 3 mg kg À1 . The latter would bear negligible risks for the general population and the majority of high-level kidney consumers. On the other hand, bovine kidneys from the most contaminated areas are not suitable to be brought into the food chain because it is predicted that the maximum level is already exceeded by more than 5% of the 1-year-old animals.

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Section: Exceedance Of the European Mlsmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Sample Collectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Age Effects In Reference Areasmentioning

confidence: 99%

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