Evaluation of Content and Estimation of Daily Intake of Cadmium and Lead in Several Varieties of Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) Cultivated in the Canary Islands (Spain)

Abstract

Monitoring the metal content in foods such as potatoes is an important aspect of food safety and regulation. Samples of nine varieties of potatoes (73 samples of local potatoes and 77 samples of imported potatoes) were randomly obtained from supermarkets, farmers markets, and farmer plots in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain). The edible portion (pulp) was the only part considered for analysis because Spaniards traditionally eat only peeled potatoes. Cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) were determined using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Cd concentrations ranged from 0.006 mg/kg in the Cara and Negra varieties to 0.019 mg/kg in the Bonita variety, and Pb concentrations ranged from 0.007 mg/kg in the Up-to-date variety to 0.023 mg/kg in the Recara variety. The mean concentrations of Cd (0.01 mg/kg) and Pb (0.014 mg/kg) were below the limits established by European regulations for potatoes (0.1 mg/kg of wet weight for each metal). Based on a mean consumption of 143.2 g of potato per person per day for the Canary Islands population, the mean daily intakes of Cd (0.015 mg/day) and Pb (0.023 mg/day) were below the legislated respective tolerable weekly intakes. Thus, the samples analyzed were considered safe to eat with regard to the metal concentrations found.

Heavy Metals in Unprocessed or Minimally Processed Foods Consumed by Humans Worldwide: A Scoping Review

“…In order to compare the obtained information, we classified each food item reported according to the Global Individual Information Food Consumption Data Tool (FAO/WHO GIFT) [26], into nine food groups, cereals, roots and tubers, pulses, seeds and nuts, milk, eggs, fish and shellfish, meat, vegetables and fruits, and in their corresponding subgroup; (33), studied other metals (12), without weight base HM´s analysis (57) culinary or plant ingredients (2), fungi studies (33), with sample size ≤1 or without sample size (24), food items with a cooking process or not reported as raw or natural food (3), studies of foods that were identified ≤3 times per food group (1), not identified as edible food (1), all results presented as food group (6), evaluate HM thorough storage containers (5), does not report the country of origin (1) Studies included (n =152)…”

“…Then, we considered 359 full-text studies for reading. Of these, 207 were excluded according to the following exclusion criteria: processed food (5), not natural experiment (15), publication before 2011 (2), hunted animals (6), reported animal feed (1), without a measure of central tendency and/or without an exact or precise value of HM (33), studied other metals (12), without weight base HM analysis (57), culinary or plant ingredients (2), fungi studies (33), with sample size ≤ 1 or without sample size (24), food items with a cooking process or not reported as raw or natural food (3), studies of foods that were identified ≤3 times per food group (1), not identified as edible food (1), all results presented as food group (6), evaluated HM thorough storage containers (5), and does not report the country of origin (1). Finally, 152 studies were included (Figure 1).…”

“…Figure S1: Heavy metals concentration in parts per million (ppm) in the least reported food groups worldwide. References [ 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 ,…”