Opinion of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety on the results of the Third French Total Diet Study (TDS3) - Acrylamide, aluminium, silver, cadmium, mercury and lead

Overview

ANSES reported the first results from the Third French Total Diet Study for acrylamide and five trace elements: silver, cadmium, lead, aluminium, and mercury. Foods were sampled from French supply channels, prepared as consumed, and paired with INCA3 food-consumption data for dietary-exposure assessment. Mercury speciation is explicit: methylmercury and inorganic mercury were measured in a targeted set of foods, while total mercury was measured in all samples.

Key numbers

• Study frame: 718 samples were selected, based on 276 TDS3 foods divided into 44 groups and covering more than 90% of the population’s average diet.
• Sampling: products were collected in three French administrative departments from May 2021 to August 2022; each sample was made up of 12 sub-samples of the same food product or products.
• Detection/quantification: aluminum was detected in 100% and quantified in 97% of 718 samples; lead was detected in 100% and quantified in 90%; cadmium was detected in 89% and quantified in 67%; total mercury was detected in 20% and quantified in 6%.
• Mercury speciation subset: inorganic mercury and methylmercury were each analysed in 46 samples; inorganic mercury detection/quantification rates were 91% and 54%, and methylmercury rates were 91% and 72%.
• Methylmercury concentrations: Table 5 reports fish at 94 (170) µg/kg fresh weight, crustaceans and molluscs at 27 (44) µg/kg fresh weight, fish dishes at 19 (5.6) µg/kg fresh weight, mixed salads containing fish at 20 (3.9) µg/kg fresh weight, and breakfast cereals containing rice at 2.4 (0.021) µg/kg fresh weight.
• Aluminum concentrations: Table 6 reports condiments, herbs, and spices at 120 (170) mg/kg fresh weight; crustaceans and molluscs at 21 (15) mg/kg fresh weight; confectionery and chocolate at 14 (13) mg/kg fresh weight; breakfast cereals at 6.1 (5.5) mg/kg fresh weight.
• Cadmium concentrations: Table 6 reports crustaceans and molluscs at 81 (91) µg/kg fresh weight, confectionery and chocolate at 58 (78) µg/kg fresh weight, offal at 51 (92) µg/kg fresh weight, crisps and savoury biscuits at 34 (32) µg/kg fresh weight, and condiments, herbs, and spices at 30 (31) µg/kg fresh weight.
• Lead concentrations: Table 6 reports condiments, herbs, and spices at 110 (130) µg/kg fresh weight, crustaceans and molluscs at 34 (41) µg/kg fresh weight, nuts and seeds at 24 (24) µg/kg fresh weight, and fish dishes at 15 (25) µg/kg fresh weight.
• No cadmium, total mercury, or lead sample exceeded the maximum regulatory level cited by ANSES; aluminum, silver, and mercury speciation forms did not have maximum regulatory levels in foods.
• Exposure: children had aluminum mean exposure 71 [68 - 74] µg (kg bw-1) day-1 and 95th percentile 150 [140 - 150]; adults had 38 [37 - 39] and 75 [73 - 77].
• Exposure: children had cadmium mean 0.27 [0.25 - 0.28] to 0.28 [0.26 - 0.29] µg (kg bw-1) day-1; adults had 0.14 [0.14 - 0.15] to 0.15 [0.15 - 0.16].
• Exposure: children had methylmercury mean 0.028 [0.024 - 0.032] to 0.029 [0.025 - 0.033] µg (kg bw-1) day-1; adults had 0.021 [0.018 - 0.024] to 0.022 [0.018 - 0.025].
• Main contributors: fish contributed 73-75% of children’s and 74-76% of adults’ methylmercury exposure; tap water contributed 12-19% of children’s and 10-16% of adults’ lead exposure.

Methods (brief)

TDS3 used INCA3 consumption data and foods sampled from representative French supply channels. Samples were prepared as consumed, including cooking and other household preparation steps. Aluminum, silver, cadmium, mercury, and lead results were reported for food groups, with lower-bound and upper-bound handling for censored results. For mercury, targeted speciation analyses for methylmercury and inorganic mercury were used; for other foods in the inorganic-mercury exposure calculation, total mercury was assumed to be inorganic.

Related evidence

• Seafood
• Fresh Fish
• Shellfish (shrimp, crab, lobster, clams, oysters, mussels)
• Breakfast Cereals
• Rice (white, brown, wild — bulk grain)
• Chocolate
• Snacks Crackers Biscuits — REDIRECT (Cat 7 sub-variant of Snacks, general)
• Spices
• Aluminum
• Silver
• Cadmium
• Lead
• Mercury, Total
• Methylmercury

Update history

The five most recent substantive edits to this page, classified major (evidence or structure moved), correction (a published value or statement was wrong and has been fixed), or minor (narrative rewritten without changing the underlying evidence). Each description is derived from what the edit did to this page; the linked commit is the authoritative record, routine regeneration passes are excluded, and the full version history lives in git.