Leaching of elements from packaging material into canned foods marketed in India

- The study focuses upon quality of Indian canned foods packages and safety issues.
- Al, Fe, Mn, Si & Sn elements under study were selected by analysis of food packages.
- Inter elemental correlation Al-Mn and Fe-Mn was noticed in case of leaching of Mn.
- Concentrations of Mn, Sn & Fe were significantly high at various storage conditions.
- Si content in canned food raises concern towards recommendation of tolerable limits.

The interaction between food and metal packaging can be a potential source of trace elements release, which if ingested by humans can cause harmful effects. The present study is undertaken to investigate the leaching of elements from packaging materials into canned foods under different conditions of temperature, pH and storage period. Elemental analysis was done using Energy Dispersive-X-Ray Fluorescence (ED-XRF) for packaging materials and Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrophotometry (ICP-AES) for canned foods. The concentration of Aluminum, Iron, Manganese, Silicon and Tin in the canned food products selected for analysis were found to be in range of 4.40-21.59 mg/kg, 2.38-19.70 mg/kg, 0.19-5.97 mg/kg, 16.46-359.63 mg/kg and 1.99-138.48 mg/kg respectively, when stored at room temperature within their shelf life storage period. The data revealed that the concentrations of elements under study were above the recommended limits of FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission.