Overview
Mussels grown on an experimental pilot farm in a eutrophic Sardinian lagoon were sampled in February and May 2019 (30 per session) and analyzed for 24 elements in wet soft tissue. Most elements were higher in February. Cadmium, mercury and lead stayed well below EU maximum levels.
Key numbers
- February 2019: cadmium 0.076 ± 0.006, lead 0.138 ± 0.046, total mercury 0.013 ± 0.002, arsenic 1.414 ± 0.250 mg/kg wet weight (Table 3).
- May 2019: cadmium 0.037 ± 0.011, lead 0.046 ± 0.015 mg/kg; mercury below the 0.010 mg/kg LOQ (Table 3).
- Aluminum 341 ± 192 mg/kg in February; the authors estimate the EFSA weekly aluminum intake would be reached at 315 g of mussels per week (Table 3, p. 27).
Methods (brief)
Mercury by direct mercury analyser; 23 other elements by ICP-MS after microwave nitric acid and hydrogen peroxide digestion. LOQ 0.010 mg/kg. NIST SRM 1566b oyster tissue recoveries 82 to 104%; each value is the mean of three measurements.
Evidence Fitness
Good QA, but a single experimental farm, two sampling dates and farm-gate rather than market product. Mussels are a bivalve proxy for clam-chowder; that thin page is not linked. Table 3 lists thallium while the Methods name titanium; selenium in May has an SD larger than its mean.