heavy metals
HEAVY METALS
Laboratory Analysis
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Contaminants such as heavy metals are substances that have not been intentionally added to food. These substances may be present in food as a result of the various stages of its production, packaging, transport or holding.
They also might result from environmental contamination. Since contamination generally has a negative impact on the quality of food and may imply a risk to human health, the EU has taken measures to minimise contaminants in foodstuffs.
The main limits outlined by the legislation relates to the following list of metals:
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Lead
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Cadmium
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Mercury
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Tin
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Arsenic
Testing
Maximum levels of the above items have been established and are listed in the EU Commission Regulation (EC) No 1881/2006.
Treelinks utilise UKCS accredited laboratories specialising in the analysis of pesticide residues in fresh produce, tea, food products, water, soil and many other matrices as well as heavy metal testing and other analytical services.
Testing for heavy metals is not a legal requirement and we will therefore carryout random testing for heavy metals from products purchased from countries which we have risk assessed as having a potential contamination risk, however we will carryout analysis by request for individual customers.
