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Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

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Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#31

Post by tomalpha »

I wonder if this has survived the recent cutbacks to USAID?

    And recently they are celebrating some big news on the lead fighting front: This week, UNICEF and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced a new $150 million initiative to combat lead poisoning

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#33

Post by genewitch »

ashwinsundar wrote: post #30
genewitch wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then why isn't this an issue in Bharat, as mentioned in the article?

I don't know why you're obsessed with whether India has the same problem. Maybe it hasn't been studied as extensively, or the turmeric there is healthier and hence doesn't need to be colored, or something else. Also the article doesn't say that India doesn't have this problem.

Oh i missed "Dhaka" in the sentence after the one that said lead was found in spices in india, my brain saw "[...] spices in india, [...] despite lead free turmeric"

sorry, that's my mistake.

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#34

Post by BenjiWiebe »

whiw wrote: post #26
loopdoend wrote: post #2

Wish there were some way to detect impurities like this at home.

I am not a chemist, so take this with a pinch of salt: wouldn't lead chromate + sodium bicarbonate make lead carbonate, a white precipitate? Sodium bicarbonate is likely in your kitchen cupboard already.

Not a chemist either but lead oxide is actually more soluble in water than lead chromate, so a double replacement reaction won't favor lead chromate -> lead oxide.

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#35

Post by perihelions »

LarsDu88 wrote: post #20

I immediately tested the 5 year old Sadaf tumeric in my kitchen cabinet using a 3M lead testing kit I happened to have in my house. Thankfully it came out negative!

That doesn't sound technically plausible to me—there aren't any inexpensive tests. Do you mean something like this 3M product[0], that's intended for paint not food, and is documented as "LeadCheck™ Swabs reliabily detect lead in paints at 0.5% (5,000 ppm). 3M™ LeadCheck™ Swabs may indicate lead in some paint films as low as 0.06% (600ppm)."? If so, those aren't remotely suited for this purpose—those detection lower-bounds represent astronomically high amounts of lead, for a food item.

The highest end of Pb contamination in turmeric in Bangladesh (as in OP) is, from a cursory search, maybe 483 ppm [1]. Regulatory limits in the US are in the low parts-per-billion [2]. This metal bioaccumulates over a lifetime.

[0] (.pdf) https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/1581338O/3m-leadcheck-in...

[1] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25214856/ ("Contaminated turmeric is a potential source of lead exposure for children in rural Bangladesh" / "Results: Lead concentrations in many turmeric samples were elevated, with lead concentrations as high as 483 ppm")

[2] https://www.consumerreports.org/babies-kids/baby-food/fda-pr...

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#36

Post by OJFord »

ashwinsundar wrote: post #18

You can buy dried whole turmeric at Indian stores. Take it home and grind it to powder in a magic bullet. Based on the article, it's harder to hide the bright yellow lead chromate coloring when it's used on whole turmeric, versus ground turmeric.

Article explicitly says it was being added to the whole root during buffing, before grinding.

It doesn't seem like something people need to worry about buying it at shops abroad imported properly though - when it was found in the US it was people bringing it home in their luggage.

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#37

Post by zargon »

vasusen wrote: post #4

I grew up in India and now live in the US. My mom recently got some ground turmeric from our own farm when she visited us. I am was stunned by how much more duller, brownish-yellow it was compared to the turmeric I buy in Indian stores in the US. Those are usually really bright yellows. Now, I am really scared that even stuff sold in California is probably lead paint tainted turmeric.

Burlap and Barrel tests their turmeric for lead and publishes the results. It’s a lot more expensive than Indian store turmeric, but personally I’m no longer willing to buy untested turmeric.

(Relatedly, Lundberg publishes the arsenic levels of their brown rice, so that’s basically the only brand of rice I buy any more.)

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#38

Post by bunderbunder »

LarsDu88 wrote: post #20

I immediately tested the 5 year old Sadaf tumeric in my kitchen cabinet using a 3M lead testing kit I happened to have in my house. Thankfully it came out negative!

Those 3M lead testing kits are designed to detect lead at concentrations on the order of, I don't know, what, like, a million times the limits set in food safety standards?

https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/documents/3M-leadche...

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#39

Post by crazygringo »

prairieroadent wrote: post #16

there has to be a way for us as a society to introduce a level of accountability into our so called "food" supply chain without the burden of regulation... perhaps it's as simple as spending more educating our kids about agriculture amendment: seems to be an unpopular take... my point being regulation is a workaround for a population that is worst than uneducated, miseducated, especially in regards to agriculture and…

> to introduce a level of accountability... without the burden of regulation

Why? What's wrong with regulation?

The whole point of regulation is safety and accountability and fairness.

Yes things can be over-regulated, but then the solution is to regulate properly, not over-regulate. The reason we don't have libertarian or anarchist societies is because they fundamentally can't solve the problems around safety, accountability, and fairness.

Re: Lead pigment in turmeric is the culprit in a global poisoning mystery (2024)

#40

Post by ashwinsundar »

OJFord wrote: post #36
ashwinsundar wrote: post #18

You can buy dried whole turmeric at Indian stores. Take it home and grind it to powder in a magic bullet. Based on the article, it's harder to hide the bright yellow lead chromate coloring when it's used on whole turmeric, versus ground turmeric.

Article explicitly says it was being added to the whole root during buffing, before grinding. It doesn't seem like something people need to worry about buying it at shops abroad imported properly though - when it was found in the US it was people bringing it home in their luggage.

Yes but the coloring is easier to visually detect on the whole root, versus the powder (according to article). If you see bright yellow whole turmeric at a store, run away!

FYI real, fresh turmeric is a dull orange color with a tan papery skin. It still stains the hands and cutting board when chopped, but that's normal. As the root dries, it turns a dull yellow-orange.

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