Does organic farming reduce the content of Cd and certain other trace metals in plant foods? A pilot study

Organic Food: Buying More Safety or Just Peace of Mind? A Critical Review of the Literature

“…chemical manufacturing, mining, refining, and smelting operations), agricultural practices, energy production, and disposal of hazardous toxic wastes (Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), 1979; Tirado and Schmidt, 2001;Vallack et al, 1998). In accordance with this view, most studies indicate similar levels of contamination by these pollutants in a variety of both organic and conventional food products; where differences have shown up, they don't consistently give the edge to either type of food (Lecerf, 1995;Woese et al, 1997;Worthington, 2001;Slanina, 1995;Kumpulainen, 2001;Jorhem and Slanina, 2000;Malmauret et al, 2002). It may be that the variability within a given crop is greater than the variability between one cultivation system and another (Jorhem and Slanina, 2000).…”

“…In accordance with this view, most studies indicate similar levels of contamination by these pollutants in a variety of both organic and conventional food products; where differences have shown up, they don't consistently give the edge to either type of food (Lecerf, 1995;Woese et al, 1997;Worthington, 2001;Slanina, 1995;Kumpulainen, 2001;Jorhem and Slanina, 2000;Malmauret et al, 2002). It may be that the variability within a given crop is greater than the variability between one cultivation system and another (Jorhem and Slanina, 2000). Similarities in the levels of the various environmental contaminants in organic and conventional food are to be expected in the future, as well, given the opportunities for uptake into both types of agricultural produce.…”

Correlations among Yield, Taste, Tuber Characteristics and Mineral Contents of Potato Cultivars Grown at Different Growing Conditions

“…The amount of Cd, which is accumulated and translocated in plants, varies with species and cultivars (Grant et al, 1998;McLaughlin et al, 1994). The cultivation system need not be solely responsible for Cd content of plants (Jorhem & Slanina, 2000). This seems also to be quite clear in the cases of Pb or Hg content in tubers, for which the only significant effects were those associated with the location or interaction cultivar × location and their concentrations in soil.…”

Putting the safety of organic food into perspective

“…Increased metal levels in soils, however, do not necessarily result in increased metal contents in the plants grown in the fields (Moolenaar & Lexmond, 1999), and thus in foods produced by these plants. Indeed, although comparative analyses of organic and conventional foods are limited, the few studies published to date show no consistent difference in Cd levels (Lecerf, 1995;Woese et al 1997;Jorhem & Slanina, 2000;Worthington, 2001;Malmauret et al 2002). Nevertheless, some preliminary data point towards higher Cd concentrations in conventional foodstuffs compared with organic ones (Karavoltsos et al 2002).…”