Meat: cadmium
In a MAFF survey (fiscal 1997–2002), cadmium in meat (muscle) was low, with maximums of 0.05 for beef, 0.07 for pork, 0.03 for chicken, and 0.03 mg/kg for horse, and the share below the limit of quantification (0.01) was about 95% for beef and pork, about 89% for chicken, and about 86% for horse. No Japanese public concentration data were found for organ meats such as liver and kidney. Note that the data are more than 20 years old.
Levels measured in Japanese government surveys and studies
| Metal | Form / state | Mean | Range / max | Samples | Survey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cadmium | Total cadmium, beef (muscle) | No average published | <0.01–0.05 | 116 samples | MAFF, fiscal 1997–2002 |
| Cadmium | Total cadmium, pork (muscle) | No average published | <0.01–0.07 | 121 samples | MAFF, fiscal 1997–2002 |
| Cadmium | Total cadmium, chicken (muscle) | No average published | <0.01–0.03 | 26 samples | MAFF, fiscal 1997–2002 |
| Cadmium | Total cadmium, horse meat (muscle) | No average published | <0.01–0.03 | 7 samples | MAFF, fiscal 1997–2002 |
Units are mg/kg (= ppm). These are values for muscle, not for organ meats such as liver and kidney. The material has no averages. The share below the limit of quantification (0.01) was about 95% for beef and pork, about 89% for chicken, and about 86% for horse.
Limits (Japan, international, EU)
| Set by | Limit | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Japan (Food Sanitation Act) | No cadmium standard for meat | The cadmium standard covers only rice and mineral waters |
| Codex (international standards) | Cadmium standard for meat: none listed | — |
| EU (Regulation 2023/915) | Muscle 0.050 (cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry), horse 0.20 / liver 0.50 / kidney 1.0 | — |
Good to know
- Cadmium in muscle is low, with maximums of 0.05 for beef, 0.07 for pork, 0.03 for chicken, and 0.03 mg/kg for horse, and the share below the limit of quantification was about 95% for beef and pork, about 89% for chicken, and about 86% for horse. However, the survey is from fiscal 1997–2002, more than 20 years ago.
- No Japanese public concentration data for liver and kidney were found. The EU sets limits of 0.50 mg/kg for liver and 1.0 mg/kg for kidney. Finland, in its national rules, does not allow the liver of horses over 5 years old, the kidney of horses of all ages, the kidney of cattle over 4 years old, and others to be used as food (an authority’s page; a secondary confirmation).
- In seafood, there are known cases in which the viscera are 25 to 117 times the muscle (33.9 in the liver of squid versus 0.29 in the muscle; 5.80 in the hepatopancreas (“uro”) of scallops versus 0.12 in the edible part). For meat, Japanese public material has no such measured values for the viscera.
- In the total diet study (2024), cadmium in the meat and eggs group was 0.06 μg/day, under 1% of the overall total (13.4 μg/day). Japanese cadmium intake comes mainly from rice, vegetables, seaweed, and seafood.
- For hen’s eggs (fiscal 2019, 150 samples), lead was below the limit of quantification (0.01) in every sample, and total arsenic had a maximum of 0.01 with 99% below the limit of quantification. No Japanese public survey values for lead in meat were found.
Related explainers
Pages for each metal
Sources
- MAFF, cadmium survey data on domestic agricultural, livestock, and fishery products (meat)
- Consumer Affairs Agency, “Q&A on cadmium in food”
- EU Regulation 2023/915 (maximum levels for contaminants in food)
- Ruokavirasto (Finnish Food Authority), “Cadmium in food”
- MAFF, “Survey of lead contained in livestock products” (hen’s eggs and honey)
- MHLW research grant, Total Diet Study, fiscal 2024, sub-study report
Last checked 2026.10.03 (against the original government documents and papers, collected and cross-checked in Gemini Notebook).