Mercury in Common Chanterelles mushrooms: Cantharellus spp. update

This paper reports the results of the determination of Hg contents of Common Chanterelles (Cantharellus cibarius) Fr. and surface soil layer (0–10 cm) underneath the fruiting bodies collected from 14 spatially distant areas across Poland between 1998 and 2008. Cantharellus mushrooms are important wild foods that are popular in Europe. The Hg contents of soils and Common Chanterelles showed different distributions, depending on the area studied. The range of Hg contents of the mushroom fruiting bodies was 18–66 ng/g dry weight with the highest mean contents of 46 ± 15 ng/g (range 23–66 ng/g) and 46 ± 13 ng/g (34–61 ng/g) observed for pristine areas of Podlasie land at the Białowieża Forest and Wielkopolska land near the Porażyn sites, respectively, and low concentration of 27 ± 8 ng/g (range 21–56 ng/g) observed for the Kujawy land at the Tuszynki site. The mean Hg levels in soil varied from 8 ± 6 ng/g (4–21 ng/g) for Kujawy land at the Tuszynki site to 200 ± 29 ng/g (145–240 ng/g) for Małopolska land at the high Tatra Mountains area of Zakopane. The mean soil Hg at the Zakopane site is approximately 25 times the concentration of Kujawy land, Tuszynki. Mercury bioaccumulations were in general low with the mean bioconcentration factor (BCF) ranging from 0.20 ± 0.05 to 3.8 ± 1.7 (overall range of 0.1–5.9). The Hg in soils and fruiting bodies of the present study are within acceptable ranges. The consumption of 300 g of popular Common Chanterelles from any of the investigated regions in Poland would not result in exposure to Hg that is in excess of the maximum weekly dose recommended by the WHO. The estimated dietary exposures to Hg for consumers of this mushroom were calculated and are shown to be below the guidelines for safe exposures. Also reviewed are published data on Hg and MeHg in C. cibarius and 11 other species of the Cantharellus genus collected worldwide.