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Contaminants – the Irish Context

Christina Tlustos, Food Safety Authority of Ireland

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HEAVY METALS

•Natural components of the Earth’s crust •Cannot be degraded or destroyed •Occur in the entire food chain•Bioaccumulate in biological systems•Affect various body systems (kidneys, liver, reproductive, cardiovascular, immune, nervous, gastrointestinal systems)

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2 issues of particular interest

• Cadmium in Potatoes (geological)

• Cadmium in Crab (dispute)

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Cadmium in potatoesCadmium in potatoes

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Source: Soil Geochemical Atlas of Ireland, Teagasc & EPA, 2007

Cadmium in Irish Soil

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Potato Production

Total Potato Production in in Meath, Louth, Dublin, Kildare and Westmeath (impact areas) in 2008 = 58%*

Mean concentration of 0.09 mg/kg Cd in Potatoes grown in impact areas as analysed by Cork PAL 2008Range: 0.05-0.18 mg/kg

Maximum Legislative Limit 0.1 mg/kg(Regulation 1881/2006/EC)

*Teagasc Data 2008

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Issue is two-fold:

LegislationSome samples exceed maximum legislative limit

ExposureTolerable Weekly Intake (TWI) for Cadmium very recently decreased by almost a third (from 7ug to 2.5 ug/kg bw)*

*http://www.efsa.europa.eu/cs/BlobServer/Scientific_Opinion /contam_op_ej980_cadmium_en_rev.1.pdf?ssbinary=true

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Cadmium Exposure from Total Diet

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What to do…

Follow up samples taken (DAFF Horticulture and Plant Health Division)Research (Teagasc):•Use of fertilisers•Soil composition (acidity, Zinc content, etc)•Soil remediation strategies (liming, etc)•Cd uptake of different Potato species

Still ongoing….

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Cadmium in CrabsCadmium in Crabs

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The issue…

Along the month of November 2007 several entries into the RASFF were made by the competent Italian authorities, declaring high cadmium levels in crabs originating from Ireland.

Follow up investigation & analysis in Ireland (Marine Institute, Public Analyst Laboratory – Galway) found no elevated Cadmium concentrations in crab, contradictory to the Italian findings.

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The discrepancy…

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006 states that the maximum level in crustaceans is 0.5 mg/kg. This maximum levels applies to crustaceans excluding brown meat of crab and excluding head and thorax meat of lobster and similar large crustaceans.

The discrepancy: Irish laboratories analysed white meat, while Italian laboratories analysed a portion of the crab in which also hepatopancreas was taken

Italy’s position: definition of brown meat is not very clear in the legislation and may give rise to different interpretations

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The EU Commission’s viewpoint:

Record of the Standing Committee on the food chain and animal health, December 2007:

… maximum level for cadmium in crabs was established on the basis of white meat only. Therefore, hepatopancreas should not be included into the sample portion for analysis for official control.

…. aware that in some countries parts of the brown meat may be consumed, but the issue of the edible portion is a different question ….

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The solution???

Modification of the wording in Regulation (EC) No. 1881/2006 on cadmium in crustaceans and more specifically the portion of crustaceans to which the maximum level applies:

“ muscle meat from appendages and abdomen (excluding the cephalothorax)”

However, Italy continues to issue Rapid Alerts, basing their decision on Article 14 of Regulation 178/2002:

1. Food shall not be placed on the market if it is unsafe.2. Food shall be deemed to be unsafe if it is considered to be:

(a) injurious to health(b) unfit for human consumption

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What next…What next…

No permanent solution found so far..No permanent solution found so far..

Commission asked all Member States to provide Commission asked all Member States to provide CdCd data on all data on all parts of crab (appendages, white meat, brown meat, parts of crab (appendages, white meat, brown meat, hepatopancreashepatopancreas) and to provide contribution of each part to ) and to provide contribution of each part to total total CdCd content of the crab by March 2010content of the crab by March 2010

The battle continues….The battle continues….

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