Determination of total cadmium, lead, arsenic, mercury and inorganic arsenic in mushrooms: outcome of IMEP-116 and IMEP-39

• Published in: Food additives & contaminants. Part A, Chemistry, analysis, control, exposure & risk assessment Chemistry, analysis, control, exposure & risk assessment, 2015-01, Vol.32 (1), p.54-67
• Main Authors: Cordeiro, F, Llorente-Mirandes, T, López-Sánchez, J.F, Rubio, R, Sánchez Agullo, A, Raber, G, Scharf, H, Vélez, D, Devesa, V, Fiamegos, Y, Emteborg, H, Seghers, J, Robouch, P, de la Calle, M.B
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: arsenic; Arsenic - analysis; cadmium; Cadmium - analysis; Environmental Pollutants - analysis; European Union; Food additives; food contamination; Food contamination & poisoning; Food Contamination - analysis; Food safety; governance; Heavy metal content; Humans; inorganic arsenic; issues and policy; Laboratories; Laboratory Proficiency Testing - legislation & jurisprudence; Laboratory Proficiency Testing - statistics & numerical data; lead; Lead - analysis; Lentinula edodes; mercury; Mercury - analysis; Mushrooms; Observer Variation; Original; Practice Guidelines as Topic; proficiency test; program evaluation; Reproducibility of Results; Shiitake Mushrooms - chemistry; trace elements; uncertainty
• ISSN: 1944-0057; 1944-0049; 1944-0057
• DOI: 10.1080/19440049.2014.966336

The Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) of the Joint Research Centre (JRC), a Directorate General of the European Commission, operates the International Measurement Evaluation Program (IMEP). IMEP organises inter-laboratory comparisons in support of European Union policies. This paper presents the results of two proficiency tests (PTs): IMEP-116 and IMEP-39, organised for the determination of total Cd, Pb, As, Hg and inorganic As (iAs) in mushrooms. Participation in IMEP-116 was restricted to National Reference Laboratories (NRLs) officially appointed by national authorities in European Union member states. IMEP-39 was open to all other laboratories wishing to participate. Thirty-seven participants from 25 countries reported results in IMEP-116, and 62 laboratories from 36 countries reported for the IMEP-39 study. Both PTs were organised in support to Regulation (EC) No. 1881/2006, which sets the maximum levels for certain contaminants in food. The test item used in both PTs was a blend of mushrooms of the variety shiitake (Lentinula edodes). Five laboratories, with demonstrated measurement capability in the field, provided results to establish the assigned values (X ᵣₑf). The standard uncertainties associated to the assigned values (u ᵣₑf) were calculated by combining the uncertainty of the characterisation (u cₕₐᵣ) with a contribution for homogeneity (u bb) and for stability (u ₛₜ), whilst u cₕₐᵣ was calculated following ISO 13528. Laboratory results were rated with z - and zeta (ζ)-scores in accordance with ISO 13528. The standard deviation for proficiency assessment, σ ₚ, ranged from 10% to 20% depending on the analyte. The percentage of satisfactory z -scores ranged from 81% (iAs) to 97% (total Cd) in IMEP-116 and from 64% (iAs) to 84% (total Hg) in IMEP-39.