Impact of Soil Heavy Metal Pollution on Food Safety in China

• Published in: PloS one 2015-08, Vol.10 (8), p.e0135182-e0135182
• Main Authors: Zhang, Xiuying, Zhong, Taiyang, Liu, Lei, Ouyang, Xiaoying
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agricultural land; Agricultural management; Agricultural pollution; Agriculture; Cadmium; Cadmium - analysis; China; Chromium; Chromium - analysis; Copper; Copper - analysis; Data collection; Environmental monitoring; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Environmental Pollutants; Environmental quality; Farmlands; Fertilizer application; Fertilizers; Food; Food contamination & poisoning; Food Contamination - analysis; Food Safety; Food security; Geographic information science; Geography; Grain; Health aspects; Heavy metal content; Heavy metal poisoning; Heavy metals; Human influences; Industry; Information management; Irrigation; Laboratories; Lead; Lead - analysis; Mercury; Mercury (metal); Mercury - analysis; Metallurgy; Metals; Metals, Heavy - analysis; Mining; Nickel; Nickel - analysis; Pollutants; Pollution; Production; Quality standards; Remote sensing; Safety and security measures; Sediment pollution; Sewage; Sewage disposal; Smelting; Soil - chemistry; Soil contamination; Soil management; Soil management (Agronomy); Soil Pollutants - analysis; Soil pollution; Soil quality; Soils; Spatial variations; Studies; Urban development; Urban Population; Zinc; Zinc - analysis
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0135182

Food safety is a major concern for the Chinese public. This study collected 465 published papers on heavy metal pollution rates (the ratio of the samples exceeding the Grade II limits for Chinese soils, the Soil Environmental Quality Standard-1995) in farmland soil throughout China. The results showed that Cd had the highest pollution rate of 7.75%, followed by Hg, Cu, Ni and Zn, Pb and Cr had the lowest pollution rates at lower than 1%. The total pollution rate in Chinese farmland soil was 10.18%, mainly from Cd, Hg, Cu, and Ni. The human activities of mining and smelting, industry, irrigation by sewage, urban development, and fertilizer application released certain amounts of heavy metals into soil, which resulted in the farmland soil being polluted. Considering the spatial variations of grain production, about 13.86% of grain production was affected due to the heavy metal pollution in farmland soil. These results many provide valuable information for agricultural soil management and protection in China.