Occurrence of perchlorate in processed foods manufactured in China

Perchlorate has been recognized as a new threat to the environment and foods, which may cause serious health problems. The information on perchlorate contamination in water and food samples in China is limited. The aims of this study were to acquire the baseline contamination levels of perchlorate in 660 processed food samples, representing 11 food categories manufactured in the Beijing-Tianjin- Hebei (BTH) region in China, and assess its health risk to the consumers. Among the samples analyzed, 574 samples contained perchlorate, and the concentrations ranged from below limit of quantitation (LOQ) to 53.8 mu g/kg depending on the product. The mean concentrations of perchlorate in all the samples analyzed was 6.1 mu g/kg. Based on maximum exposure scenario obtained in this study, the estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of total 11 processed food groups for Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei adults group were 488.5, 523.8 and 501.2 ng/kg bw/day, respectively. The levels are lower than the reference dose (RfD) value (700 ng/kg bw/day) suggested by the United States National Academy of Science (U.S. NAS). This result suggests a limited health risk to BTH region adults due to perchlorate exposure via processed food.