Overview
This study measured lead, cadmium and aflatoxin M1 in raw materials and finished infant formulas from one dairy plant in Shahrekord, Iran, in 2018-2019. Metals were measured by graphite furnace AAS. The authors conclude that all means were below Iranian, EU and Codex limits. The cadmium and lead figures, however, are not consistent across the tables, abstract and text.
Key numbers
- Raw cow’s milk, Table 3 columns as printed: cadmium 12.52 ± 1.78 ppb (3 to 49) and lead 10.8 ± 2.83 ppb (4.9 to 14). The abstract and text assign these numbers to the opposite metals (Table 3, p. 59).
- Infant formula, all types: cadmium 4.97 ± 3.08 ppb, lead 12.57 ± 2.89 ppb (Table 4, p. 59).
- Skim-type infant formula: lead 14.53 ± 1.59 ppb; its cadmium mean of 8.01 ppb exceeds its printed maximum of 4.5 ppb (Table 4).
Methods (brief)
Samples were dry-ashed at 450 °C, dissolved in dilute nitric acid and read by graphite furnace AAS in duplicate. The LOD and LOQ were 3 and 9 µg/kg for lead and 0.4 and 1.2 µg/kg for cadmium. No reference material or recovery data are given for metals. Every row of the tables gives “80” as its sample number, which is the study total.
Evidence Fitness
Direct evidence for raw cow milk and infant formula powder from a single plant, but integrity problems are serious. The cadmium and lead columns are swapped between Table 3 and the abstract and text for raw milk, maltodextrin and starch, and between Table 4 and the text for immediate formula. Some means fall outside their own ranges. Findings keep the table labels with integrity flags. The journal DOI is an mEDRA DOI with no Crossref record, so it is unverified, and peer review is unverified. Raw milk is a proxy for half-and-half and skim-milk. The “skim” products are infant formula, not skim milk. Neither thin page is linked.