Intake of lead and cadmium from edible vegetables cultivated in Tarragona Province, Spain

Lead and cadmium concentrations were determined in 360 samples-belonging to 12 different species of edible vegetables from Tarragona Province, Spain. The samples were subjected to lead and cadmium analyses by ICP-MS. Results were compared with those from 1989 (both metals) and 1994 (lead) surveys. Only onion and parsley showed increases in lead levels during the period 1989 - 2001, while pronounced decreases were observed in the remaining species. In turn, in all species cadmium levels were markedly lower than the concentrations found in the 1989 survey. The average lead and cadmium contents found in edible vegetables from Tarragona Province have been 0.073 and 0.010 mug/g, respectively. These values are of the same order of magnitude than recent levels reported for other countries. According to data of the current study, contribution of edible vegetables to the total daily intake of lead and cadmium would be 14.6 and 2.02 mug, respectively.