Assessment of health risk from organochlorine pesticides residues in high-fat spreadable foods produced in Poland

Abstract

Currently, butter and margarine are food products attracting wide customer interest. Every day, consumers around the world buy these products for human consumption. Butter is obtained from milk fat, while margarine is derived from vegetable oils. The content of organochlorine pesticide (OCP) residues was examined in both types of these high fatty products. A gas chromatograph with MSD (HP 5973) detector was used for the determination of pesticides such as α-HCH, β-HCH, γ-HCH, DDT, DDD, DDE, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor and heptachlor epoxide. The examined products had diverse concentrations of the analyzed compounds. Visible was the division based on the origin of the product, which might be composed of animal or vegetable fats. The research has revealed the presence of OCP residues in all examined spreads. Quantities of organochlorine compounds did not pose an immediate danger to the consumers’ health. Human and environmental health risk assessment was carried out by the estimation of lifetime average daily dose (LADD) and non-carcinogenic health hazard quotient (HQ). Total estimated LADD ranged between 1.3 × 10⁻⁵ and 3.1 × 10⁻⁵ mg kg⁻¹ d⁻¹ for butter, and 1.9 × 10⁻⁶ and 4.6 × 10⁻⁶ mg kg⁻¹ d⁻¹ for margarine and mix spread. The HQ ranged between 1.1 × 10⁻⁴ and 3.7 × 10⁻⁴ for butter, and 1.4 × 10⁻⁵ and 9.0 × 10⁻⁶ for margarine and mix spread for adults. These estimated HQs were within the safe acceptable limits, indicating a negligible risk to the residents of the study area.

Keywords:

• Organochlorine pesticides residues
• high fatty foods
• margarine and butter
• health risk
• lifetime average daily dose
• health hazard quotient

Acknowledgment

The authors are grateful to Prof. Mikołaj Protasowicki, the head of the Toxicology Department at the Faculty of Food Sciences and Fisheries, for his kindness and support.