Impact of source, packaging and presence of food safety management system on heavy metals levels in spices and herbs
| Author | Moussa, Layale |
| Author | Hassan, Hussein F. |
| Author | Savvaidis, Ioannis N. |
| Author | Karam, Layal |
| Available date | 2024-09-25T07:49:52Z |
| Publication Date | 2024-08-01 |
| Publication Name | PLoS ONE |
| Identifier | http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0307884 |
| Citation | Moussa L, Hassan HF, Savvaidis IN, Karam L (2024) Impact of source, packaging and presence of food safety management system on heavy metals levels in spices and herbs. PLoS ONE 19(8): e0307884. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0307884 |
| Abstract | Spices and herbs are susceptible to various contaminants, including heavy metals. Our study aimed to quantify the levels of lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), cadmium (As), and cadmium (Cd) in 96 composite samples of 13 herbs and spices frequently consumed in Lebanon. Twenty percent (19/96) and 4% (4/96) of the samples exceeded the permissible levels of Pb and Cd, respectively and all the samples met the permissible levels of As and Hg according to Codex Alimentarius standards. For Pb and Cd, unpackaged samples had the highest levels of unacceptable samples of 31% (8/26) and 8% (2/26), respectively. The samples locally packaged in companies with and without Food Safety Management System (FSMS) had the same levels of unacceptable samples of 12% (3/26) and 4% (1/26) for Pb and Cd, respectively. Imported packaged samples had unacceptable levels of Pb (28% (5/18)) and were acceptable for the three other heavy metals. |
| Sponsor | The authors would like to thank Dr. Michel Frem and Dr. Rima El Hage from the Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute, for supporting this study. Open access funding was provided by the Qatar National Library. |
| Language | en |
| Publisher | Public Library of Science |
| Subject | Lead in spices Arsenic in herbs Cadmium in spices and herbs Mercury in spices and herbs Packaging materials Organic vs. conventional spices and herbs Global supply chains Food safety standards Risk assessment Quality control |
| Type | Article |
| Issue Number | 8 |
| Volume Number | 19 |
| ESSN | 1932-6203 |
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