Rapid analysis of harmful heavy metals in pet food using EDXRF

Introduction

On June 1, 2009, the Act on Ensuring the Safety of Pet Food was enacted in Japan, and compositional standards for dog and cat food were established. The ordinance specifies maximum levels for toxic heavy metals in pet food: cadmium (Cd) ≤ 1 μg/g, lead (Pb) ≤ 3 μg/g, and inorganic arsenic (As) ≤ 2 μg/g. Although atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AA) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) are commonly used for heavy metal analysis, they require complicated pretreatment such as acid digestion and skilled operators. In this study, we focused on X-ray fluorescence analysis, which enables simple and rapid pretreatment, and analyzed five elements: Cd, Pb, As, mercury (Hg), and selenium (Se). This poster presents the usefulness of X-ray fluorescence analysis for toxic heavy metals in pet food and discusses prospects.

September 8, 2026 GMT