Heavy metals in Milk and Dairy

Milk and Dairy overview

Milk and Dairy in the HMI library has 6,521 reported results for lead, cadmium, total arsenic, inorganic arsenic, dimethylarsinic acid, monomethylarsonic acid, total mercury, methylmercury, nickel, chromium, aluminium, tin, antimony, uranium, Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, Zn, V, Se, Ag, As, AsIII, AsV, B, Ba, Be, Bi, Ca, Cr(III), CrIII, CrVI, Ga, Hg, I, K, Li, Mg, Mo, Na, P, Pt, Si, Sr, Ti, Tl and W from 155 sources.^{1World Health Organization · 2026GEMS/Food Contaminants database heavy-metal exportsGEMS/Food Contamination Monitoring and Assessment ProgrammeRead source →2U.S. Food and Drug Administration · 2022FY2018-FY2020 TDS Elements Analytical ResultsFDA Total Diet StudyRead source →3Amer AAEM, Abo El-Makarem HS, El-Maghraby MAE, Abou-Alella SAE · 2021Lead, cadmium, and aluminum in raw bovine milk: Residue level, estimated intake, and fate during artisanal dairy manufactureJournal of Advanced Veterinary and Animal Research 8(3):454-464Read source →4Abdelnaby A, Abdelaleem NM, Elshewy E, Mansour AH, Ibrahim SS · 2022Application of Bentonite Clay, Date Pit, and Chitosan Nanoparticles as Promising Adsorbents to Sequester Toxic Lead and Cadmium from MilkBiological Trace Element ResearchRead source →5Ahmad I, Zaman A, Samad N, Ayaz MM, Rukh S, Akbar A, Ullah N · 2017Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometery Detection of Heavy Metals in Milk of Camel, Cattle, Buffalo and Goat from Various Areas of Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), PakistanJournal of Analytical & Bioanalytical Techniques 2017, 8(3): 367Read source →6Al Sidawi R, Ghambashidze G, Urushadze T, Ploeger A · 2021Heavy Metal Levels in Milk and Cheese Produced in the Kvemo Kartli Region, GeorgiaFoodsRead source →} WHO GEMS/Food submissions reported lead in milk and Dairy, as sold from 15,931 results in 5 reporting regions, with subgroup medians from 1.48 to 370 µg/kg.^{1World Health Organization · 2026GEMS/Food Contaminants database heavy-metal exportsGEMS/Food Contamination Monitoring and Assessment ProgrammeRead source →} In the US Total Diet Study, milk and Dairy, as sold had a median lead result below 4 µg/kg across 3 composites from 2018–2020.^{2U.S. Food and Drug Administration · 2022FY2018-FY2020 TDS Elements Analytical ResultsFDA Total Diet StudyRead source →}

Across 32 other studies of ordinary farms and markets, reported lead means and medians on an as-sold or fresh-weight basis ranged from 0.29 µg/kg (Dabeka et al. 1987) to 20,600 µg/kg (Budaraga et al. 2022).^{7Dabeka, McKenzie · 1987Lead, cadmium, and fluoride levels in market milk and infant formulas in CanadaJournal of Association of Official Analytical Chemists 70(4):754-757Read source →8Budaraga IK, Salihat RA · 2022Heavy metals analysis (Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu, Cr) and calcium in Padang and Padang Panjang fresh cow’s milkIOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 1038 (2022) 012076 (AESAP-2021)Read source →} For cadmium, 40 studies on an as-sold or fresh-weight basis reported means and medians from 0.008 µg/kg (Dabeka et al. 1987) to 1,310 µg/kg (Sadeghi et al. 2020).^{7Dabeka, McKenzie · 1987Lead, cadmium, and fluoride levels in market milk and infant formulas in CanadaJournal of Association of Official Analytical Chemists 70(4):754-757Read source →9Sadeghi N, Behzad M, Homay Razavi S, Jannat B, Oveisi MR, Hajimahmoodi M · 2020Measurement of Zinc, Copper, Lead, and Cadmium in the Variety of Packaging Milk and Raw Milk in Tehran Markets by Anodic Striping VoltammetryJournal of Chemical Health Risks 10(3) (2020) 175-183Read source →} Higher results came from contaminated or exposed settings rather than ordinary supply. Milk and Dairy, peel or outer layer from D2, 250-500 m from brick kilns (industrial-affected area) had lead higher at 740 µg/kg, against 110 µg/kg for D0 control area, Tankipora (no kiln within 1500 m) in the same study.^{10Bhat AM, Bashir S, Sofi JA, Hassan GI, Wani FJ, Sheikh GN, Dar AA · 2022Long-Term Operation of Brick-Kilns Led Heavy Metal Contamination of Soil-Plant-Animal Continuum in Kashmir HimalayasJournal of Animal ResearchRead source →}

For a buyer the practical points are the form bought, the basis a result is reported on, where the milk and Dairy came from and the laboratory’s reporting limit. Testing finds contamination but does not remove it.

What counts as milk and Dairy

This page covers milk and Dairy in 8 forms kept separate in every comparison: milk and Dairy, as sold (6,386 results), milk and Dairy, powder or ground (70 results), milk and Dairy, canned (34 results), milk and Dairy, peel or outer layer (12 results), milk and Dairy, flour or meal (8 results), milk and Dairy, cooked (4 results), milk and Dairy, oil (4 results) and milk and Dairy, dried (3 results).^{1World Health Organization · 2026GEMS/Food Contaminants database heavy-metal exportsGEMS/Food Contamination Monitoring and Assessment ProgrammeRead source →2U.S. Food and Drug Administration · 2022FY2018-FY2020 TDS Elements Analytical ResultsFDA Total Diet StudyRead source →3Amer AAEM, Abo El-Makarem HS, El-Maghraby MAE, Abou-Alella SAE · 2021Lead, cadmium, and aluminum in raw bovine milk: Residue level, estimated intake, and fate during artisanal dairy manufactureJournal of Advanced Veterinary and Animal Research 8(3):454-464Read source →4Abdelnaby A, Abdelaleem NM, Elshewy E, Mansour AH, Ibrahim SS · 2022Application of Bentonite Clay, Date Pit, and Chitosan Nanoparticles as Promising Adsorbents to Sequester Toxic Lead and Cadmium from MilkBiological Trace Element ResearchRead source →5Ahmad I, Zaman A, Samad N, Ayaz MM, Rukh S, Akbar A, Ullah N · 2017Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometery Detection of Heavy Metals in Milk of Camel, Cattle, Buffalo and Goat from Various Areas of Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), PakistanJournal of Analytical & Bioanalytical Techniques 2017, 8(3): 367Read source →6Al Sidawi R, Ghambashidze G, Urushadze T, Ploeger A · 2021Heavy Metal Levels in Milk and Cheese Produced in the Kvemo Kartli Region, GeorgiaFoodsRead source →}

Results stay on the basis each source reports: as sold or fresh weight, dry weight, or unstated. Dry-weight, as-sold and unstated results are never pooled, and no moisture conversion is applied.

Heavy metal contamination profile of milk and Dairy

The table holds every extracted milk and Dairy result: one row for each statistic a source reports for a form, group and metal, 6,521 rows in all, grouped by metal and form; percentiles, ranges and maxima for the same samples as a mean or median are shown on that row.^{1World Health Organization · 2026GEMS/Food Contaminants database heavy-metal exportsGEMS/Food Contamination Monitoring and Assessment ProgrammeRead source →2U.S. Food and Drug Administration · 2022FY2018-FY2020 TDS Elements Analytical ResultsFDA Total Diet StudyRead source →3Amer AAEM, Abo El-Makarem HS, El-Maghraby MAE, Abou-Alella SAE · 2021Lead, cadmium, and aluminum in raw bovine milk: Residue level, estimated intake, and fate during artisanal dairy manufactureJournal of Advanced Veterinary and Animal Research 8(3):454-464Read source →4Abdelnaby A, Abdelaleem NM, Elshewy E, Mansour AH, Ibrahim SS · 2022Application of Bentonite Clay, Date Pit, and Chitosan Nanoparticles as Promising Adsorbents to Sequester Toxic Lead and Cadmium from MilkBiological Trace Element ResearchRead source →5Ahmad I, Zaman A, Samad N, Ayaz MM, Rukh S, Akbar A, Ullah N · 2017Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometery Detection of Heavy Metals in Milk of Camel, Cattle, Buffalo and Goat from Various Areas of Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), PakistanJournal of Analytical & Bioanalytical Techniques 2017, 8(3): 367Read source →6Al Sidawi R, Ghambashidze G, Urushadze T, Ploeger A · 2021Heavy Metal Levels in Milk and Cheese Produced in the Kvemo Kartli Region, GeorgiaFoodsRead source →} Monitoring medians are HMI calculations from individual submissions; non-detects remain intervals between zero and the reporting limit and are never read as zero.^{1World Health Organization · 2026GEMS/Food Contaminants database heavy-metal exportsGEMS/Food Contamination Monitoring and Assessment ProgrammeRead source →}

1,286 rows can be rated against an HMI reference for the same form and basis, 706 rows have a direct same-study comparison, and the rest stay unrated with the reason recorded. 242 values from 40 sources failed a check against their own source and are shown but not compared.^{5Ahmad I, Zaman A, Samad N, Ayaz MM, Rukh S, Akbar A, Ullah N · 2017Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometery Detection of Heavy Metals in Milk of Camel, Cattle, Buffalo and Goat from Various Areas of Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), PakistanJournal of Analytical & Bioanalytical Techniques 2017, 8(3): 367Read source →7Dabeka, McKenzie · 1987Lead, cadmium, and fluoride levels in market milk and infant formulas in CanadaJournal of Association of Official Analytical Chemists 70(4):754-757Read source →11Food Standards Agency, Hallmark Meat Hygiene · 2014Survey of metals and other elements in commercial infant foods, infant formula and non-infant specific foodsFood Standards Agency reportRead source →12Marín S, Pardo O, Sánchez A, Sanchis Y, Vélez D, Devesa V, Font G, Yusà V · 2018Assessment of metal levels in foodstuffs from the Region of Valencia (Spain)Toxicology Reports 5 (2018) 654-670Read source →13Davidov I, Kovacevic Z, Stojanovic D, Pucarevic M, Radinovic M, Stojic N, Erdeljan M · 2019Contamination of Cow Milk by Heavy Metals in SerbiaActa Scientiae VeterinariaeRead source →14Di Bella C, Traina A, Giosue C, Carpintieri D, Lo Dico GM, Bellante A, Del Core M, Falco F, Gherardi S, Uccello MM, Ferrantelli V · 2020Heavy Metals and PAHs in Meat, Milk, and Seafood From Augusta Area (Southern Italy): Contamination Levels, Dietary Intake, and Human Exposure AssessmentFrontiers in Public Health 8:273Read source →15Elsheikh MA, Ali DMH, Alotaibi SH · 2020Evaluation of Some Toxic and Essential Trace Elements in Children Foods and Infant Formulae by Using ICP-OESAsian Journal of Chemistry 32(6):1273-1278Read source →16Feng C, Li H, Li Y, Zhang L, Su C, Fu T · 2026Content and Dietary Exposure Assessment of Toxic Elements in Milk and Dairy Products from the HenanResearch Square preprint, posted 20 January 2026Read source →17Ibrahim SA, El-Sohaimy SA, Abd El-Aziz M, Shehata MG · 2024Heavy metals in raw milk and Egyptian cheese typesOpen Veterinary JournalRead source →18Karimi Dehcheshmeh B, Shakerian A, Rahimi E · 2021Evaluation of Aflatoxin M1 and Heavy Metal in Raw Materials and Infant Formula Produced in Pegah Dairy Plants, IRANJournal of Chemical Health Risks (2021) 11(1), 55-62Read source →19Marcus OI, Tabaran A, Crisan Reget OL, Dan SD, Panait LC, Lacatus CM, Popescu M, Codea AR, Purdoiu RC, Lacatus R, Petrescu-Mag IV, Nicolescu A, Bora FD · 2026From Farm to Retail: Decoding the Elemental Landscape of Milk and Dairy Products Across Organic and Conventional Production Systems Using ICP-MSToxics 2026, 14, 124Read source →20Marques M, Correig E, Capdevila E, Gargallo E, Gonzalez N, Nadal M, Domingo JL · 2021Essential and Non-essential Trace Elements in Milks and Plant-Based DrinksBiological Trace Element ResearchRead source →21Muhib MI, Chowdhury MAZ, Easha NJ, Rahman MM, Shammi M, Fardous Z, Bari ML, Uddin MK, Kurasaki M, Alam MK · 2016Investigation of heavy metal contents in Cow milk samples from area of Dhaka, BangladeshInternational Journal of Food Contamination 3:16Read source →22Parsaei P, Rahimi E, Shakerian A · 2019Concentrations of Cadmium, Lead and Mercury in Raw Bovine, Ovine, Caprine, Buffalo and Camel MilkPolish Journal of Environmental StudiesRead source →23Sarsembayeva NB, Abdigaliyeva TB, Utepova ZA, Biltebay AN, Zhumagulova SZ · 2020Heavy metal levels in milk and fermented milk products produced in the Almaty region, KazakhstanVeterinary World 13(4):609-613Read source →24Samun Shahzad, Kamran Ashraf, Nusrat Ehsan, Khawar Sultan, Asim Abbasi, Sobia Tabassum, Amina Muzamil, Nazih Y. Rebouh, Qamar uz Zaman · 2025Assessment of hazardous trace metals and associated health risk as affected by feed intake in buffalo milkScientific Reports 15:9841Read source →25Shar ZH, Pirhot OP, Shar HH, Channa MK · 2021Assessing the risk of heavy metals contamination in milk from PakistanInternational Journal of Science and Research Archive, 2021, 03(01), 107-113Read source →26European Commission Directorate-General Health and Consumer Protection, SCOOP Task 3.2.11 experts · 2004Assessment of the dietary exposure to arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury of the population of the EU Member StatesReports on tasks for scientific cooperation, SCOOP Task 3.2.11Read source →27Nasiru S, Dambazau SM, Garba MH, Babandi A, Wudil AM · 2022Human Health Risk Assessment of Heavy metals in Cow Milks from Selected Local Government Areas of Kano state, NigeriaJournal of Chemical Health Risks (2022) 12(2), 305-314Read source →28Saleh DS · 2025Analysis of Heavy Metals Levels in Milk and Dairy Products and Assessing the Associated Health RisksSAR Journal of Medical Biochemistry 6(2): 31-39Read source →29Wang M, Liang B, Zhang W, Chen K, Zhang Y, Zhou H, Cheng Y, Liu H, Zhong X, Li Y, Liu Y · 2019Dietary Lead Exposure and Associated Health Risks in Guangzhou, ChinaInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public HealthRead source →30Badar S, Arshad M, Hassan SA, Badar L · 2025Assessment of Cadmium, Lead and Copper in Milk and Associated Risks to Consumer HealthInternational Journal of Agriculture and Biology 33:330503Read source →31Chirinos-Peinado D, Castro-Bedriñana J, Ríos-Ríos E, Castro-Chirinos G, Baquerizo-Canchumanya M · 2026Risk Assessment of Lead and Cadmium Exposure Through Raw Milk Consumption from Small-Scale Dairy Systems in the Central Peruvian AndesToxics 14(5): 385Read source →32Masoumeh Madani-Tonekaboni, Neda Sadat Aghayan, Roshanak Rafiei Nazari, Solmaz Mirzamohammadi, Anna Abdolshahi, Negar Abbasi-Bastami, Majid Arabameri · 2019Monitoring and risk assessment of lead and cadmium in milks from East of Iran using Monte Carlo simulation methodNutrition and Food Sciences ResearchRead source →33Meena A, Kaur R · 2016Human health risk assessment for heavy metals via intake of contaminated milk and milk productsJournal of Applied and Natural Science 8(3): 1603-1610Read source →34Mahaffey KR, Corneliussen PE, Jelinek CF, Fiorino JA · 1975Heavy Metal Exposure from FoodsEnvironmental Health PerspectivesRead source →35Siddique F, Arshad M, Zubair F, Ijaz A, Tufail T, Ali Z · 2023Impact of Seasonal Variations (Aflatoxin M1 & Heavy metals) on Quality of Marketed MilkDIET FACTOR (Journal of Nutritional & Food Sciences) 4(2): 29-33Read source →36Fuentes-Gandara F, Barreto-Canas J, Marrugo-Madrid S, Marrugo-Negrete J, Pinedo-Hernandez J, Diez S · 2025Health Risk Assessment of Metal(loid) Contamination in Raw Cow’s Milk from the Colombian Caribbean RegionBiological Trace Element Research (2025) 204:1043-1056Read source →37Kaya TN, Zurnacı M, Şener İ · 2024Determination of Heavy Metal Accumulation in Milk and Their Packaging Materials and Statistical AnalysisJournal of Engineering Technology and Applied SciencesRead source →38Jolly YN, Iqbal S, Rahman MS, Kabir J, Akter S, Ahmad I · 2017Energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence detection of heavy metals in Bangladesh cows’ milkHeliyon 3 (2017) e00403Read source →39Pankiewicz U · 2012Monitoring of total mercury level in selected dairy products from the south-east regions of PolandEcological Chemistry and Engineering ARead source →40Şengül SA, Sakin F · 2026Occurrence, contamination pathways, and risk assessment of potentially toxic elements in cows’ milk from industrial and non-industrial areas in TürkiyeRevista Científica de la Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias (FCV-LUZ) Vol. XXXVI, e363920 (9 pp.)Read source →41Hernandez F, Bemrah N, Séby F, Noël L, Guérin T · 2019Cr(VI) and Cr(III) in milk, dairy and cereal products and dietary exposure assessmentFood Additives & Contaminants Part B: SurveillanceRead source →42Chen L, Li X, Li Z, Deng L · 2020Analysis of 17 elements in cow, goat, buffalo, yak, and camel milk by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)RSC AdvancesRead source →43Issa SY, Genena DM, Al Mazroua MK, Abdel Rahman SM, Fawzi MM · 2016Determination of some metals in the commonly consumed dairy products randomly collected from the market in Alexandria - Egypt, with an emphasis on toxicity, permissible limits and risk assessmentInternational Journal of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 4 (2) (2016) 133-137Read source →44Sonya Good, Chukwunonso Anakwue, Tuan Phan · 2026Comparative exposure and risk assessment of heavy metals, nutrients, and organochlorine pesticides in cow and plant-based milksScientific ReportsRead source →45Lukáčová A, Massányi P, Greń A, Golian J · 2012Concentration of Selected Elements in Raw and Ultra Heat Treated Cow MilkJournal of Microbiology, Biotechnology and Food Sciences 2(2), 795-802Read source →46Ibanga UI, Fakunle JO, Raji AO, Sogunle KA · 2019Studies on chemical elements and anti-nutrients compositions of three traditional vegetable oils in NigeriaJournal of Agricultural Science and Practice 4(5), 144-150Read source →47Khan N, Ullah R, Wahid F, Sultana Q, Rahim M · 2021Spectrophotometric Quantification of Trace Elements and Toxic Metals in Raw Milk Samples of Peshawar City, PakistanInternational Journal of Economic and Environmental Geology 12(1): 53-59Read source →48Almášiová S, Toman R, Pšenková M, Tančin V, Jančo I · 2024Toxic Elements in Sheep Milk, Whey, and Cheese from the Environmentally Burdened Area in Eastern Slovakia and Health Risk Assessment with Different Scenarios of Their ConsumptionToxics 12 (2024) 467Read source →}