Consumer Reports FSASC 2014 — Analysis of Arsenic in Rice and Other Grains
Consumer Reports’ Food Safety and Sustainability Center tested 128 samples of basmati, jasmine, and sushi rice purchased in 2014, combined those results with FDA data and their 2012 dataset to create a 697-sample composite, and analyzed 114 alternative grain samples to assess inorganic arsenic levels across rice types and grain alternatives. The headline finding is a statistically significant geographic effect: basmati rice from India, Pakistan, or California and U.S.-grown sushi rice had the lowest mean total inorganic arsenic concentrations of any rice category tested, while rice labeled from Arkansas, Louisiana, or Texas had the highest. Alternative grains including amaranth, millet, and quinoa showed significantly less inorganic arsenic than rice of any type.
Key numbers
White rice by type (mean total iAs, all origins combined):
- Basmati/Texmati: 57.4 ppb mean (range 21.2–144 ppb)
- Sushi: 61.9 ppb mean (range 30.4–94.5 ppb)
- Jasmine: 75.9 ppb mean (range 34.0–110.0 ppb)
- Short nonaromatic: 80.1 ppb mean (range 52.0–102.0 ppb)
- Medium nonaromatic: 81.0 ppb mean (range 39.0–174.0 ppb)
- Long nonaromatic: 101.2 ppb mean (range 23.0–196.0 ppb)
Basmati/Texmati white rice by origin (mean total iAs):
- California: 43.1 ppb* (range 27.0–56.0 ppb)
- India/Pakistan: 52.9 ppb* (range 21.2–144.0 ppb)
- U.S. generic: 79.3 ppb (range 40.9–107.0 ppb)
- Arkansas/Texas: 94.3 ppb (range 77.0–112.4 ppb) *Statistically different from rest, p < 0.001
All white rice types by origin (mean total iAs):
- India or Pakistan: 52.9 ppb* (range 21.2–144.0 ppb)
- California: 62.6 ppb* (range 23.0–102.0 ppb)
- Thailand: 77.1 ppb* (range 56.3–110.0 ppb)
- Arkansas/Louisiana/Texas: 91.6 ppb* (range 30.4–174.0 ppb)
- U.S. generic: 113.9 ppb* (range 40.9–196.0 ppb) *All values statistically different from each other, p < 0.001
Sushi white rice by origin (mean total iAs):
- Texas: 54.0 ppb (range 30.4–89.5 ppb)
- California: 64.6 ppb (range 41.6–94.5 ppb); p95 = 94.5 ppb
Imported basmati (India/Pakistan) p95: 86.0 ppb (3.9 mcg/serving); one outlier at 144.0 ppb.
Combined dataset composition (n=697): 113 brown + 360 white (FDA), 31 brown + 66 white (CR2012), 21 brown + 115 white (CR2014). Parboiled rice was notably higher in iAs than other white rice sub-types in prior analysis.
Alternative grains (n=114): amaranth, barley, buckwheat, bulgur, farro, millet, polenta/grits, quinoa — all reported as having significantly less iAs than rice. Specific concentration data for alternative grains by type were not tabulated in the public report.
Methods (brief)
Total arsenic measured by ICP-DRC-MS (EPA Method 3050B digestion, EPA 200.8 performance standards). Arsenic speciation (arsenite, arsenate, MMA, DMA) by IC-ICP-CRC-MS per FDA Elemental Analysis Manual Section 4.11. Samples purchased April–May 2014 in New York, Atlanta, and Los Angeles metro areas. Statistical analysis used to determine significant differences between rice type × origin groups.
Limitations
This is a B-tier NGO/advocacy report, not peer-reviewed. Data for alternative grains are summarized qualitatively without per-grain concentration tables in the public document. The analysis pools CR and FDA data collected across multiple years and methods; the FDA data contribution is not fully characterized in the public report. Brown rice concentrations are reported in the composite dataset but not separately analyzed by origin in the tables provided.
Implications
- Certification: The geographic stratification directly supports HMT&C supply-chain sourcing guidance. California- and India/Pakistan-origin basmati and U.S. sushi rice have p95 values (≤94.5 ppb) that fall below or near the FDA 100 ppb action level for infant rice cereal, making them lower-risk sourcing options. South-central U.S. rice (Arkansas/Texas/Louisiana) runs 2x higher and poses greater certification challenges.
- Courses: Strong illustration of how origin geography interacts with rice type to produce very different iAs levels in the same commodity. The basmati California vs. Arkansas comparison (43 vs. 94 ppb) is pedagogically clear.
- App: Ingredient-level risk differentiation is warranted between basmati (India/Pakistan/CA origin) and generic long-grain U.S. rice; app should flag origin when stated on ingredient label. Quinoa positioned as lower-arsenic alternative grain.
- Microbiome: Not applicable.