Market Basket 2010 - Chemical analysis, exposure estimation and health-related assessment of nutrients and toxic compounds in Swedish food baskets

In Market Basket 2010 we collected food baskets from five Swedish major grocery chains by using a shopping list based on per capita food consumption data derived from production and trade statistics. Two types of baskets were purchased at each grocery chain, mirroring the standard price and the low price assortments. The food baskets were purchased in Uppsala in May-June 2010. Based on the food categories included in the per capita statistics, a detailed shopping list was produced and followed at the purchase event. The baskets were divided into 12 food groups, homogenates of each food group were analysed for selected compounds and the supply, or per capita exposure, was calculated. Both nutrients and toxic compounds were analysed and this report includes data on levels in food groups of total fat and fatty acids, carbohy¬drates (sugars, starch, dietary fibre), vitamin D, essential minerals and toxic metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), pesticides, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). For these food components food per capita exposure data were calculated, which were assessed against health-based recomm¬endations of supplies of nutrients and tolerable/acceptable exposures of contaminants. Generally, this market basket study is in most cases satisfactory from a health-based point of view. The differences in levels, both regarding toxic compounds and nutrients, between standard and low price baskets, and between grocery chains (when this was studied) were small. For the analysed nutrients, the changes in per capita exposure compared to earlier market basket studies are generally small, and, with some exceptions, in line with recommended intakes or levels. Regarding potentially toxic compounds in food, the estimated per capita exposures are in many cases well below accep¬table/tolerable intake levels or health-based reference doses, and time trends (when present) are mostly favourable, i.e. decreasing levels compared to earlier market basket studies.