A study published by the French consumer protection magazine 60 Millions de consommateurs has revealed that more than 80 per cent of pasta packages sold across France contain cadmium, a toxic heavy metal classified as a human carcinogen.
The investigation examined 36 separate product references of penne and spaghetti. The testing covered four distinct product categories: standard wheat pasta, whole wheat varieties, gluten-free options, and quick-cooking versions.
Cadmium contamination was detected in products manufactured by major brands widely consumed throughout France, including market leaders Barilla, Lustucru, and Panzani, as well as private-label supermarket store brands. Barilla, an Italian multinational food company, alongside French producers Panzani and Lustucru, accounts for the vast majority of dry pasta sales in the French market.
The findings were originally reported in a decryption report by journalist Mathilde Luczak for the regional daily newspaper La Dépêche du Midi. The report highlighted the impact of the study published in the latest issue of 60 Millions de consommateurs, an independent magazine published by France's National Consumer Institute.
Cadmium exposure levels in France
The National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety, known in France as Anses, warned that cadmium impregnation levels among the French population are three to four times higher than those observed in other European nations.
Health officials noted that the presence of cadmium in the French diet is not a new discovery, having been recognized as an ongoing contamination issue since at least 2011.
According to recent monitoring data from Anses, nearly one out of every two adults in France displays a cadmium impregnation level above the recommended safety threshold. Furthermore, approximately 25 per cent of French children ingest daily amounts of the heavy metal that exceed tolerable health limits.
The National Institute of Health and Medical Research, known as Inserm, warned that cadmium accumulates in the human body for up to 30 years, primarily in the liver and kidneys. Inserm experts emphasized that the toxic metal also poses severe risks to human reproduction.
Medical findings show that cadmium promotes skeletal demineralisation and significantly increases the risk of bone fractures, particularly among elderly people and individuals with existing physical vulnerabilities. Long-term exposure has also been linked to kidney failure and pancreatic cancer.
Sources of contamination in agricultural land
In its third national total diet study, Anses detected the presence of cadmium in 89 per cent of all food products analyzed across France.
The heavy metal was identified in everyday staple foods including bread, pasta, potatoes, and breakfast cereals, as well as more broadly across various fruit and vegetable crops.
Agricultural experts explained that cadmium occurs naturally in soil and is also present in synthetic mineral phosphate fertilisers applied to farmland. Plants absorb the toxic metal from the soil through their roots during growth, making it virtually impossible to achieve a human diet completely free of cadmium.
Karine Daniel, an economist at the École supérieure des agricultures in Angers, pointed out that organic agricultural products can contain lower concentrations of cadmium. She explained that organic farming avoids synthetic fertiliser inputs, which limits the cumulative addition of cadmium to agricultural soils.
European safety standards and regulatory enforcement
Daniel characterized the current regulatory situation in France as nothing less than a circumvention of European Union safety standards designed to protect consumers from hazardous substances.
Daniel stated that under the French precautionary principle, public authorities ought to take immediate measures to protect consumers from potential health risks whenever a suspicion emerges.
Daniel emphasized that primary responsibility for addressing cadmium contamination is political and collective. She stated that France has failed to fully enforce European safety standards intended to protect citizens from chemical exposure.
Addressing claims from economic and agricultural stakeholders who cite market competitiveness and complain of excessive regulation, Daniel asserted that regulatory standards exist to structure markets and safeguard public health. She maintained that commercial competitiveness must never take precedence over citizen safety.
Dietary recommendations to limit cadmium intake
Health officials stressed that consumers do not need to eliminate pasta or other essential staple foods from their daily diets entirely.
Instead, individuals can limit their overall heavy metal intake by varying the geographic origins of their food and maintaining a diverse diet.
Official guidelines published on the website of the French Ministry of Health recommend consuming a higher proportion of legumes, such as lentils, chickpeas, and beans, so that households do not rely exclusively on pasta or bread as primary carbohydrate sources.
Dr Pierre Souvet, a medical doctor specialising in environmental health risks, advised consumers to monitor potential iron deficiencies, replace pasta with chickpeas where practical, and vary their daily meals to minimize heavy metal exposure.
Legislative action in the French Parliament
The debate surrounding official cadmium exposure thresholds has intensified across France, with medical groups and consumer advocates demanding that legal limits be lowered significantly.
In response to growing public concern, the National Assembly, the lower house of the French Parliament, passed a bill in early June aimed at reducing allowable cadmium thresholds in food products.
The draft legislation has now been sent to the Senate, the upper house of parliament, where lawmakers are scheduled to examine the text. Under the French legislative system, bills must be debated and passed by both chambers before becoming law.
The parliamentary effort has been highlighted by activist campaigns, including work by campaigner Alexandre Roussel, who brought the issue to the Senate following the death of his mother from rapid pancreatic cancer. Roussel publicly stated that politicians who vote against the law are voting for death.
