Soil threshold values for cadmium based on paired soil-vegetable content analyses of greenhouse vegetable production systems in China: Implications for safe food production.

Greenhouse vegetable production (GVP) is the major type of vegetable production in China. However, dietary exposure of heavy metals through vegetable consumption has been identified as a potential risk to human health. To ensure safety of vegetables, soil threshold values (STVs) of cadmium (Cd) in GVP systems were assessed based on analysis of soil-vegetable Cd contents in relation to human health risk. Contents of Cd were determined in 324 sampled soil-vegetable pairs from five GVP systems in three Chinese provinces. Soil Cd contents ranged from 0.07 to 1.32 mg kg-1, with 17.9% of sampled soils exceeding current Chinese threshold values. Vegetable Cd contents ranged from 0.0003 to 0.546 mg kg-1, with 8.6% exceeding permissible maxima. Vegetable type and soil pH significantly affected Cd transfer from soil to vegetable with lower transfer at neutral (6.5 < pH ≤ 7.5) to alkaline (pH > 7.5) soils and uptake decreasing in the order: Leafy > rootstalk > fruit. Consequently, both soil pH and vegetable type should be taken into consideration as suggested when revising current STVs for Cd in GVP systems in order to capture the health risk correctly and ensure safe vegetable consumption.