Elements in rice from the Swedish market: 1. Cadmium, lead and arsenic (total and inorganic)

Abstract

A survey of the levels of cadmium, lead and arsenic in different types of rice available on the Swedish retail market was carried out in 2001–03. The types of rice included long and short grain, brown, white, and parboiled white rice. The mean levels found were as follows: total As: 0.20 mg kg⁻¹, inorganic As: 0.11 mg kg⁻¹; Cd: 0.024 mg kg⁻¹; and Pb: 0.004 mg kg⁻¹. ICP-MS was used for the determination of As (total and inorganic) after acid digestion. Lead and cadmium were determined using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry (GFAAS) after dry ashing. In countries where rice is a staple food, it may represent a significant contribution in relation to the provisional tolerable weekly intake for Cd and inorganic As.

Keywords:

• Rice
• heavy metals
• inorganic arsenic
• trace elements
• cadmium
• lead
• arsenic

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Dr Irene Mattisson, National Food Administration, Sweden, for reading the manuscript and giving valuable comments. The analysis of inorganic and total arsenic was financed by the Swedish National Food Administration. The part concerning inorganic and total arsenic, lead and cadmium was part of an IAEA Co-ordinated Research Project (SWE 12004).