Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs in the UK diet: 2001 Total Diet Study samples (Number 38/03)

• Dioxins and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were analysed in samples of the food groups that made up the 2001 UK Total Diet Study.
• The estimated total dietary intakes of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs by all age groups fell by around 50% between 1997 and 2001.
• The estimated average intakes by adults of the sum of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs from the UK diet have fallen from 1.8 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bodyweight/day in 1997 to 0.9 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bodyweight/day respectively in 2001. Average adult intakes are well within the new UK safety limit (Tolerable Daily Intake - TDI). The percentage of adults estimated to exceed the TDI from the whole diet fell from 35% in 1997 to 1.1% in 2001.
• The estimated average intakes by schoolchildren of the sum of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs from the UK diet have fallen from 1.6-4.0 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bodyweight/day in 1997 to 0.7-1.8 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bodyweight/day respectively in 2001, with younger children being at the upper end of each of these ranges. The percentage of children estimated to exceed the TDI from the whole diet fell from 62% in 1997 to 10% in 2001.
• Intakes of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs from the diets of toddlers have also fallen, and average intakes are estimated to be close to or slightly over the new UK safety guideline. The percentage of toddlers estimated to exceed the TDI from the whole diet fell from 97% in 1997 to 37% in 2001.
• The concentrations of dioxins found were all below relevant EU regulatory limits.