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Traces of potentially harmful synthetic chemicals are in a wide array of food across Europe, including butter, milk, Scottish salmon, Greek cheese, Spanish ham and Italian salami. The report from WWF said the findings illustrate the pervasiveness of industrial chemicals and underscores the need for tighter chemical regulation.
"It is shocking to see that even a healthy diet leads to the daily uptake of so many contaminants," said Sandra Jen, director of WWF's DetoX Campaign. "Breaking this global chain of contamination will require a strong commitment from EU politicians to human health and the environment."
WWF found traces of manmade chemicals in every one of 27 food items tested, including dairy products, meat, fish, bread, honey and olive oil. The samples were purchased in supermarkets in seven EU countries - the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Greece, Sweden, Finland and Poland.
The samples were analyzed for eight different groups of man-made chemicals - organochlorine pesticides, PCBs, brominated flame retardants, perfluorinated chemicals, phthalates, organotins, alkylphenols and artificial musks. The findings ranged from phthalates in olive oil, cheeses and meats, organochlorine pesticides in fish and reindeer meat, artificial musks and organotins in fish, and flame retardants in meats and cheeses.
PCBs were found in all samples analyzed and a metabolite of DDT was found in 16 of 27 samples. Brominated flame retardants were found in 19 of 26 samples, with the highest concentrations in meat and phthalates were found in 16 of 21 samples.
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