Clinical Pharmacist and Master’s student in Clinical Pharmacy with research interests in pharmacovigilance, behavioral interventions in mental health, and AI applications in clinical decision support. Experience includes digital health research with Bloomsbury Health (London) and pharmacovigilance practice in patient support programs. Published work covers drug awareness among healthcare providers, postpartum depression management, and patient safety reporting. 
Clinical Pharmacist and Master’s student in Clinical Pharmacy with research interests in pharmacovigilance, behavioral interventions in mental health, and AI applications in clinical decision support. Experience includes digital health research with Bloomsbury Health (London) and pharmacovigilance practice in patient support programs. Published work covers drug awareness among healthcare providers, postpartum depression management, and patient safety reporting. What was reviewed
EFSA-metals-contaminants-in-food is an EFSA topic synthesis that consolidates how metals enter the food chain, which hazards matter most, and how EFSA’s risk assessments connect to EU controls. It frames metals (notably arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury) as naturally occurring but amplified by human activities and processing/storage contamination, emphasizing that long-term accumulation can cause harm. It also highlights recent EFSA scientific opinions on organoarsenic species and summarizes milestone risk-assessment conclusions that translate into actionable control points for food businesses and certification schemes.
Who was reviewed
Rather than a single cohort, EFSA-metals-contaminants-in-food reflects population-level exposure and risk characterization across European consumers, explicitly calling out vulnerable subgroups when risk can concentrate. Examples include infants, toddlers, and children for nickel and potential neurodevelopmental concerns from lead exposure in early life, as well as high consumers of fish and rice for certain organoarsenic exposures. It also references pan-European consumption evidence bases (e.g., multiple countries and dietary surveys) that support chronic exposure evaluation and the setting or refinement of health-based guidance values used in risk management.
Most important findings
For an HMTC-style program, EFSA-metals-contaminants-in-food is most useful as a “risk-to-controls map”: it links where metals show up in foods, which forms matter toxicologically, and which consumer groups and products drive risk—then anchors those insights to EU maximum levels and official control expectations.
| Critical point | Details |
|---|---|
| Metals enter food through environment and processing | Metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury occur in soil, water, and air, and can also contaminate foods via farming, industrial activity, vehicle emissions, and during processing/storage; EFSA underscores that bioaccumulation over time is what converts “low-level presence” into a health issue. |
| Speciation is a certification-critical concept for arsenic | EFSA notes that complex organoarsenic species are highest in seafood (fish, crustaceans, molluscs, seaweed) and concludes some exposures (arsenobetaine; glycerol arsenosugar) are unlikely to raise concern, while data gaps prevent conclusions for other arsenosugars and arsenolipids—meaning a pass/fail program should avoid treating “total arsenic” as a single risk metric. |
| Product-pattern risks: seafood, fish, rice, drinking water | EFSA flags methylmercury risk management via limiting high-methylmercury fish species; it also highlights that DMA exposure may raise concern in high fish and rice consumers (supported by animal evidence), and it identifies drinking water as a meaningful pathway for chromium VI and uranium in certain scenarios. |
| Vulnerable groups can be the “binding constraint” | EFSA indicates chronic dietary exposure to nickel may be of concern in young people (infants, toddlers, children) and that lead exposure poses low/negligible risk for most adults but potential concern for neurodevelopmental effects in foetuses, infants, and children—suggesting certification thresholds should be evaluated against sensitive life stages, not only average adults. |
| EU controls emphasized: maximum levels + official sampling/analysis | The page points directly to EU maximum levels for contaminants (including lead, cadmium, mercury, and inorganic tin) under Regulation (EU) 2023/915 and to official control methods for sampling and analysis under Regulation (EC) 333/2007, alongside the principle that contaminant levels should be kept “as low as can reasonably be achieved.” |
Key implications
EFSA-metals-contaminants-in-food supports aligning HMTC criteria with EU maximum levels and official control methods (notably Regulation (EU) 2023/915 and Regulation (EC) 333/2007) while designing certification requirements around metal speciation, especially for arsenic, and around high-risk matrices like seafood, rice, and water-linked ingredients. Industry applications include supplier qualification by geography/process risk, targeted batch testing for vulnerable-consumer products, and fish-species controls for methylmercury. Research gaps remain for several organoarsenic forms, so practical recommendations are to predefine “unknown-risk” handling rules, require method transparency, and regularly recheck EFSA milestone updates to keep certification thresholds scientifically defensible.
Citation
European Food Safety Authority. Metals as contaminants in food. EFSA, 6 January 2026
Arsenic is a naturally occurring metalloid that ranks first on the ATSDR toxic substances list. Inorganic arsenic contaminates water, rice and consumer products, and exposure is linked to cardiovascular disease, cognitive deficits, low birth weight and cancer. HMTC’s stringent certification applies ALARA principles to protect vulnerable populations.
Cadmium is a persistent heavy metal that accumulates in kidneys and bones. Dietary sources include cereals, cocoa, shellfish and vegetables, while smokers and industrial workers receive higher exposures. Studies link cadmium to kidney dysfunction, bone fractures and cancer.
Lead is a neurotoxic heavy metal with no safe exposure level. It contaminates food, consumer goods and drinking water, causing cognitive deficits, birth defects and cardiovascular disease. HMTC’s rigorous lead testing applies ALARA principles to protect infants and consumers and to prepare brands for tightening regulations.
