Traditional Italian cheeses: Trace element levels and estimation of dietary intake

Concentrations of some toxic (Hg, Cd, Pb) and essential metals (Zn, Cu, Cr, Fe) relevant to human health were determined in different varieties of traditional cheeses, included in Traditional Agricultural Food Products (TAP) list, sampled in various farms in Apulia and Sicily, two regions of Southern Italy. Among toxic metals, Pb showed the highest concentrations (hard cheese: 0.13 μg g−1w.w.; fresh cheese: 0.07 μg g−1w.w.), while among essential element the most abundant was Fe (hard cheese: 2.86 μg g−1w.w.; fresh cheese: 2.23 μg g−1w.w.). In terms of food safety, the toxic metal concentrations in the majority of the samples investigated were below the maximum permitted levels set by several non-European countries, except for Pb showing levels notably exceeding in some hard cheese (0.22–0.37 μg g−1w.w.). Also the estimated intakes of toxic metals remained far below the provisional tolerable intakes and consequently no health risk is expected from the consumption of these cheeses. However, for greater food safety, besides to a continuous surveillance it would be advisable to establish maximum limits for metals either in milk or products made of milk.