Potential impact on food safety and food security from persistent organic pollutants in top soil improvers on Mediterranean pasture.
The organic carbon of biosolids from civil wastewater treatment plants binds persistent organic pollutants (POPs), such as polychlorodibenzo -dioxins and -furans (PCDD/Fs), dioxin and non-dioxin -like polychlorobiphenyls (DL and NDL-PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS). The use of such biosolids, derived digestates and composts as top soil improvers (TSIs) may transfer POPs into the food chain. We evaluated the potential carry-over of main bioavailable congeners from amended soil-to-milk of extensive farmed sheep. Such estimates were compared with regulatory limits (food security) and human intakes (food safety). The prediction model was based on farming practices, flocks soil intake, POPs toxicokinetics, and dairy products intake in children, of the Mediterranean area. TSI contamination ranged between 0.20-113 ng WHO-TEQ/kg dry matter for PCDD/Fs and DL-PCBs (N = 56), 3.40-616 μg/kg for ∑6 NDL-PCBs (N = 38), 0.06-17.2 and 0.12-22.3 μg/kg for BDE no. 47 and no. 99, 0.872-89.50 μg/kg for PFOS (N = 27). For a 360 g/head/day soil intake of a sheep with an average milk yield of 2.0 kg at 6.5% of fat percentage, estimated soil quality standards supporting milk safety and security were 0.75 and 4.0 ng WHO-TEQ/kg for PCDD/Fs and DL-PCBs, and 3.75 and 29.2 μg/kg for ∑6 NDL-PCBs, respectively. The possibility to use low-contaminated TSIs to maximize agriculture benefits and if the case, to progressively mitigate highly contaminated soils is discussed.
['Brambilla|G|G|', 'Abate|V|V|', 'Battacone|G|G|', 'De Filippis|S P|SP|', 'Esposito|M|M|', 'Esposito|V|V|', 'Miniero|R|R|']
D000383:Agriculture D004147:Dioxins D004784:Environmental Monitoring D004787:Environmental Pollution D020387:Food Chain D059022:Food Safety D005523:Food Supply D015386:Hazardous Substances D019083:Mediterranean Region D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins D012987:Soil D012989:Soil Pollutants
Food safety Food security Top soil improvers Mediterranean POPs Sheep Dairy