Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies on a request from the Commission related to the tolerable upper intake level of tin

Overview

EFSA’s Scientific Panel reviewed inorganic tin occurrence, dietary intake, and toxicity evidence to assess whether a tolerable upper intake level could be derived. The opinion is not a new market survey, but it is an A-tier regulatory anchor for tin migration from cans into foods. It identifies tinned fruit and vegetables as the main dietary sources of tin and preserves tin as inorganic tin/elemental tin (Sn) context rather than organotin occurrence.

Key numbers

• UK adult mean tin intake from food was estimated at 1.8 mg/day, ranging up to about 6 mg/day; French mean daily intake was estimated at 2.7 mg tin/day.
• EFSA reports that the main dietary sources of tin are tinned fruit and vegetables.
• Acute gastrointestinal effects were considered more likely with tin concentrations of 250 mg/kg in canned foods and 150 mg/kg in canned beverages.
• EU maximum levels for inorganic tin were 200 mg/kg in canned foods and 100 mg/kg in canned beverages.
• A UK study found canned fruits, including tomato and tomato products, pineapple, orange, grapefruit, and pear, were most likely to contain elevated tin; tomato products and pineapple categories each had some samples containing more than 250 mg Sn/kg.
• UK mean upper- and lower-bound estimated total dietary tin intakes for 1976 to 1982 ranged from 4.35-2.41 and 4.42-2.30 mg Sn per day, respectively.
• UK 1997 Total Diet Study estimated population average tin intake at 1.8 mg/day; the 97.5 percentile intake was 6.3 mg/day.
• UK 1997 TDS Table 1: canned vegetables had mean tin concentration 411 mg/kg fresh weight and contributed 1.353 mg/day; fruit products had 7.211 mg/kg fresh weight and contributed 0.317 mg/day; total intake was 1.8 mg/day.
• France: foods preserved in unlacquered cans contained 76.6 ± 36.5 mg/kg; foods stored in lacquered cans contained 3.2 ± 2.3 mg/kg; fresh foods contained 0.03 ± 0.03 mg/kg.
• France: tin intake was estimated at 2.7 mg/day, equivalent to 0.04 mg/kg body weight; food stored in tin cans accounted for 98% of intake while representing 5.6% of daily food consumption.

Methods (brief)

This EFSA opinion reviewed existing occurrence, intake, toxicokinetic, and toxicity studies rather than commissioning new sampling. Occurrence/intake evidence included total diet studies, duplicate diet studies, canned-food surveys, and canned beverage/food case reports. The tin values in this page are retained in the original mg/kg, mg/day, and mg/kg body weight units.

Related evidence

• Canned Vegetables — REDIRECT (Cat 7 sub-variant of Canned foods, general)
• Canned Fruit — REDIRECT (Cat 7 sub-variant of Canned foods, general)
• Canned Tomatoes — REDIRECT (Cat 7 sub-variant of Canned foods, general)
• Cans/lids
• Tin
• Tin, Inorganic

Update history

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