Study of lead absorption rate from experimentally contaminated feed into edible insects

Abstract

The subject of the consumption of insects such as the house cricket (Acheta domesticus) and mealworm larvae (Tenebrio molitor) is an increasingly debated topic in the media considering the changes in food traditions influenced by inter-ethnic cultural exchanges as well as of the need to identify new nutritional sources with increased energy intake also related to legislative developments. The practical activity of the study was carried out in an authorized veterinary sanitary and food safety laboratory and aimed to study the transfer rate of lead from experimentally contaminated feed with this element at the value of 0.15 mg/kg in edible insects fed for 14 days with this feed. Quantitative determinations of lead in insects were made at the initial moment, later at 7 days and 14 days intervals, on 6 analytical lots for each type of insects. The method of lead determination was graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. Analytical results demonstrated that the studied insects responded relatively uniformly to the degree of lead absorption during the first 7 days, namely an increase in lead levels of 41.2% in house crickets versus 40.25% in mealworm larvae.