Nitrate and Nitrite Content of Some Vegetables Grown in Central Jordan Valley
2000
Amro, A. (Jordan Univ., Amman(Jordan). Faculty of Agriculture)
Vegetables from one hundred and sixty nine (169) farms planted with cucumbers, squash; and tomatoes in central Jordan Valley were surveyed in the period between dec./ 1994 and May/ 1995, for their content of nitrates (NO3) and nitrites (NO2) using the Griess- Cd reduction method. Results of the survey indicated that there was a general increase in the nitrate and nitrite levels in the sampled fruits as one moves from north to south within the same region. Tomatoes had lower levels of nitrates and nitrites than squash tunnels. In addition, large size cucumber and squash fruits and their pulp had significantly (P=0.01) lower nitrate levels than small size fruits (88-98%), and their peels (52-79%). The nitrate level ranged between 20.0-160.5 mg/kg in cucumber, 63.9-248.7 mg/kg in squash, and 1.3-7.6 mg/kg in tomatoes. Nitrite content, on the other hand, was below 1.0 mg/kg in cucumbers and squash, and below detection level in tomatoes. The levels of nitrate and nitrite found kin the vegetables surveyed in this study are well below those levels reported in similar products grown elsewhere in the world, especially in European countries. This makes the crops grown in this region of no health risk to the consumer, as the average per capita nitrate intake of these three vegetables was less than 6.0 mg.
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