Heavy Metals Contamination of Local and Imported Rice in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia

This study defined the heavy metal concentration in rice, a commonly consumed staple food in Indonesia that is domestically produced and also imported from other countries due to its high demand. A total of six rice samples, comprising of four domestic and two foreign were randomly taken from Semarang stores and analyzed using the Atomic Absorbance Spectrometer (AAS). The laboratory results revealed that three varieties of rice, two from Indonesia (MW and PW; 0.561 and 0.456 mg/kg, each), and one from the United States (B; 0.307 mg/kg), exceeded the Indonesian dietary standard for lead (Pb) (SNI). Furthermore, the concentration of chromium (Cr) in two rice that are imported (B, 0.241 mg/kg and J, 0.723 mg/kg) were greater than the 0.2 mg/kg threshold established by the Chinese government. However, all samples had acceptable levels of As and Hg, and none had detectable levels of Cd. In terms of pH levels, domestically produced rice had a wider range (3.88–5.78) compared to imported rice (4.96–5.68). Although locally grown and imported rice had acceptable levels of LCR, only one local rice sample and two imported rice samples exceeded the Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) as well as Hazard Index (HI) values. In conclusion, consuming heavy metals contamination rice on a regular basis poses carcinogenic as well as non-carcinogenic health risks.