Abstract
Food safety and quality protection are a necessity and should draw considerable attention due to the great hazard of consuming food contaminated with heavy metals. In this context, the present study was conducted to evaluate the potential of uptake of heavy metals by cauliflower curds and its associated health risks. A sampling of soil and cauliflower plants was carried out on six farms, equally distributed throughout polluted and unpolluted sites south Greater Cairo, Egypt, for investigating their chemical characteristics and plant growth parameters. The pollution load index (PLI) of the estimated heavy metals (except Ni) was greater than 1. Besides the soil was highly polluted (PLI > 5) with Pb, Zn, Fe, Cu, and Cd. Cauliflower plants showed a significant reduction in plant density, stem and root length, fresh and dry biomass, and curd production as well as plant pigments under polluted conditions. The contents of N, P, carbohydrates, and proteins in the curds and roots of cauliflower plants from the unpolluted site were considerably higher than those estimated on the polluted site. The bioaccumulation factor of the investigated heavy metals, except Cd, Cu, Mn, and V on the unpolluted site, and all metals in the polluted site, was greater than one. However, the translocation factor of most investigated heavy metals, except Pb, Cu, Ni, and Fe in the unpolluted site and Cr, Cu, and Co in the polluted site, was less than one. The results showed that Pb, Cd, Mn, Fe, and Ni contaminations in wastewater-irrigated cauliflower plants have the highest potential to cause a health risk to public consumers, where their health risk index exceeded one. Based on the present investigation, it is strongly recommended to avoid vegetable cultivation in polluted areas, and if cultivated, the vegetable consumption is not recommended.