Heavy metals in vegetables sold in the local market in Jordan

Heavy metals (As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) in various vegetables (cabbage, green onion, lettuce, parsley, rocket, spinach, carrot, onion, potato and cauliflower) from the market in Jordan were measured using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn ranged from 0.009-0.275mgkg(-1) wet weight, 0.004-0.060mgkg(-1), 0.003-0.401mgkg(-1), 0.105-3.51mgkg(-1), 0.15-1.15mgkg(-1), 0.93-14.39mgkg(-1), 0.044-0.702mgkg(-1), 0.072-0.289mgkg(-1) and 2.23-6.65mgkg(-1), respectively. Parsley, followed by spinach, contained the highest concentration of heavy metals. Onion contained high levels of toxic heavy metals. The content of Cu in parsley and spinach and Pb in onion exceeded the Codex limits. However, the daily intake of heavy metals from the tested vegetables was lower than the maximum limits for allowable intake.