Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on 
Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh

Khandaker Nadia Anjum; Subrato Roy; Most Zakiya Islam; Md. Sajjad Hossain

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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| Peer-Reviewed

Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh

Khandaker Nadia Anjum

, Subrato Roy, Most Zakiya Islam, Md. Sajjad Hossain^*

Published in International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences (Volume 12, Issue 5)

Received: 25 September 2026 Accepted: 10 October 2026 Published: 29 October 2026

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Abstract

Cumilla district combines intensive year-round vegetable production with an export processing zone, dense brick-kiln clusters and heavily trafficked national highways, yet no systematic soil-vegetable survey of toxic metals has been reported for the district. This study quantified copper (Cu), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) in five widely grown vegetables (potato, tomato, chili pepper, cauliflower and cabbage) and their matched surface field soils (0-15 cm) across six upazilas spanning an industrial-to-rural gradient, and tested the hypothesis that crop contamination tracks soil contamination closely enough for soil monitoring to serve as a proxy for food safety screening. Thirty matched crop-soil pairs (60 composites) were digested in HNO₃: HClO₄ (2: 1) and analysed by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry; the method returned recoveries of 94.7-102.3%, relative standard deviations of 1.7-2.9% and determination coefficients above 0.999. Concentrations in vegetables (dry weight) ranged from 3.92 to 15.98 mg/kg for Cu, 0.50 to 2.96 mg/kg for Cr and 7.27 to 21.90 mg/kg for Pb; matched soils ranged from 9.78 to 24.93, 20.23 to 88.00 and 10.84 to 31.59 mg/kg, respectively. Every field soil complied with FAO/WHO agricultural soil guidelines for all three metals, yet every vegetable composite exceeded the 0.3 mg/kg maximum allowable limit for Pb. Pollution load indices exceeded unity in all 30 vegetables (1.10-2.55) and remained below unity in all 30 soils (0.20-0.46), while potential ecological risk indices indicated uniformly low ecological risk. Hazard indices exceeded unity and cumulative cancer risks exceeded 10^-4 in every sample, with Pb contributing 78-90% of the non-carcinogenic hazard. A fresh-weight sensitivity analysis reduced these magnitudes roughly nine-fold but did not alter the exceedance conclusions. Soil compliance therefore coexists with crop non-compliance, and regulatory screening in Bangladesh must be based on direct analysis of the edible crop rather than on soil.

Published in	International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences (Volume 12, Issue 5)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
Page(s)	219-240
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Bioaccumulation Factor, Dietary Exposure, Lead, Pollution Load Index, Soil-crop Transfer, Human Health Risk

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Anjum, K. N., Roy, S., Islam, M. Z., Hossain, M. S. (2026). Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh. International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences, 12(5), 219-240. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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Anjum, K. N.; Roy, S.; Islam, M. Z.; Hossain, M. S. Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh. Int. J. Appl. Agric. Sci. 2026, 12(5), 219-240. doi: 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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Anjum KN, Roy S, Islam MZ, Hossain MS. Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh. Int J Appl Agric Sci. 2026;12(5):219-240. doi: 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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@article{10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15,
  author = {Khandaker Nadia Anjum and Subrato Roy and Most Zakiya Islam and Md. Sajjad Hossain},
  title = {Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on 
Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh},
  journal = {International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences},
  volume = {12},
  number = {5},
  pages = {219-240},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijaas.20261205.15},
  abstract = {Cumilla district combines intensive year-round vegetable production with an export processing zone, dense brick-kiln clusters and heavily trafficked national highways, yet no systematic soil-vegetable survey of toxic metals has been reported for the district. This study quantified copper (Cu), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) in five widely grown vegetables (potato, tomato, chili pepper, cauliflower and cabbage) and their matched surface field soils (0-15 cm) across six upazilas spanning an industrial-to-rural gradient, and tested the hypothesis that crop contamination tracks soil contamination closely enough for soil monitoring to serve as a proxy for food safety screening. Thirty matched crop-soil pairs (60 composites) were digested in HNO3: HClO4 (2: 1) and analysed by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry; the method returned recoveries of 94.7-102.3%, relative standard deviations of 1.7-2.9% and determination coefficients above 0.999. Concentrations in vegetables (dry weight) ranged from 3.92 to 15.98 mg/kg for Cu, 0.50 to 2.96 mg/kg for Cr and 7.27 to 21.90 mg/kg for Pb; matched soils ranged from 9.78 to 24.93, 20.23 to 88.00 and 10.84 to 31.59 mg/kg, respectively. Every field soil complied with FAO/WHO agricultural soil guidelines for all three metals, yet every vegetable composite exceeded the 0.3 mg/kg maximum allowable limit for Pb. Pollution load indices exceeded unity in all 30 vegetables (1.10-2.55) and remained below unity in all 30 soils (0.20-0.46), while potential ecological risk indices indicated uniformly low ecological risk. Hazard indices exceeded unity and cumulative cancer risks exceeded 10-4 in every sample, with Pb contributing 78-90% of the non-carcinogenic hazard. A fresh-weight sensitivity analysis reduced these magnitudes roughly nine-fold but did not alter the exceedance conclusions. Soil compliance therefore coexists with crop non-compliance, and regulatory screening in Bangladesh must be based on direct analysis of the edible crop rather than on soil.},
 year = {2026}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on 
Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh
AU  - Khandaker Nadia Anjum
AU  - Subrato Roy
AU  - Most Zakiya Islam
AU  - Md. Sajjad Hossain
Y1  - 2026/10/29
PY  - 2026
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
T2  - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences
JF  - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences
JO  - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences
SP  - 219
EP  - 240
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2469-7885
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
AB  - Cumilla district combines intensive year-round vegetable production with an export processing zone, dense brick-kiln clusters and heavily trafficked national highways, yet no systematic soil-vegetable survey of toxic metals has been reported for the district. This study quantified copper (Cu), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) in five widely grown vegetables (potato, tomato, chili pepper, cauliflower and cabbage) and their matched surface field soils (0-15 cm) across six upazilas spanning an industrial-to-rural gradient, and tested the hypothesis that crop contamination tracks soil contamination closely enough for soil monitoring to serve as a proxy for food safety screening. Thirty matched crop-soil pairs (60 composites) were digested in HNO3: HClO4 (2: 1) and analysed by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry; the method returned recoveries of 94.7-102.3%, relative standard deviations of 1.7-2.9% and determination coefficients above 0.999. Concentrations in vegetables (dry weight) ranged from 3.92 to 15.98 mg/kg for Cu, 0.50 to 2.96 mg/kg for Cr and 7.27 to 21.90 mg/kg for Pb; matched soils ranged from 9.78 to 24.93, 20.23 to 88.00 and 10.84 to 31.59 mg/kg, respectively. Every field soil complied with FAO/WHO agricultural soil guidelines for all three metals, yet every vegetable composite exceeded the 0.3 mg/kg maximum allowable limit for Pb. Pollution load indices exceeded unity in all 30 vegetables (1.10-2.55) and remained below unity in all 30 soils (0.20-0.46), while potential ecological risk indices indicated uniformly low ecological risk. Hazard indices exceeded unity and cumulative cancer risks exceeded 10-4 in every sample, with Pb contributing 78-90% of the non-carcinogenic hazard. A fresh-weight sensitivity analysis reduced these magnitudes roughly nine-fold but did not alter the exceedance conclusions. Soil compliance therefore coexists with crop non-compliance, and regulatory screening in Bangladesh must be based on direct analysis of the edible crop rather than on soil.
VL  - 12
IS  - 5
ER  -

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Author Information

Khandaker Nadia Anjum

Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

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http://orcid.org/0009-0004-5287-687X
Subrato Roy

Plant Protection Wing, Department of Agricultural Extension, Dhaka, Bangladesh

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Most Zakiya Islam

Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

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Md. Sajjad Hossain

Department of Soil Science, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

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Anjum, K. N., Roy, S., Islam, M. Z., Hossain, M. S. (2026). Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh. International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences, 12(5), 219-240. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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ACS Style

Anjum, K. N.; Roy, S.; Islam, M. Z.; Hossain, M. S. Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh. Int. J. Appl. Agric. Sci. 2026, 12(5), 219-240. doi: 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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AMA Style

Anjum KN, Roy S, Islam MZ, Hossain MS. Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh. Int J Appl Agric Sci. 2026;12(5):219-240. doi: 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15

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@article{10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15,
  author = {Khandaker Nadia Anjum and Subrato Roy and Most Zakiya Islam and Md. Sajjad Hossain},
  title = {Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on 
Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh},
  journal = {International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences},
  volume = {12},
  number = {5},
  pages = {219-240},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijaas.20261205.15},
  abstract = {Cumilla district combines intensive year-round vegetable production with an export processing zone, dense brick-kiln clusters and heavily trafficked national highways, yet no systematic soil-vegetable survey of toxic metals has been reported for the district. This study quantified copper (Cu), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) in five widely grown vegetables (potato, tomato, chili pepper, cauliflower and cabbage) and their matched surface field soils (0-15 cm) across six upazilas spanning an industrial-to-rural gradient, and tested the hypothesis that crop contamination tracks soil contamination closely enough for soil monitoring to serve as a proxy for food safety screening. Thirty matched crop-soil pairs (60 composites) were digested in HNO3: HClO4 (2: 1) and analysed by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry; the method returned recoveries of 94.7-102.3%, relative standard deviations of 1.7-2.9% and determination coefficients above 0.999. Concentrations in vegetables (dry weight) ranged from 3.92 to 15.98 mg/kg for Cu, 0.50 to 2.96 mg/kg for Cr and 7.27 to 21.90 mg/kg for Pb; matched soils ranged from 9.78 to 24.93, 20.23 to 88.00 and 10.84 to 31.59 mg/kg, respectively. Every field soil complied with FAO/WHO agricultural soil guidelines for all three metals, yet every vegetable composite exceeded the 0.3 mg/kg maximum allowable limit for Pb. Pollution load indices exceeded unity in all 30 vegetables (1.10-2.55) and remained below unity in all 30 soils (0.20-0.46), while potential ecological risk indices indicated uniformly low ecological risk. Hazard indices exceeded unity and cumulative cancer risks exceeded 10-4 in every sample, with Pb contributing 78-90% of the non-carcinogenic hazard. A fresh-weight sensitivity analysis reduced these magnitudes roughly nine-fold but did not alter the exceedance conclusions. Soil compliance therefore coexists with crop non-compliance, and regulatory screening in Bangladesh must be based on direct analysis of the edible crop rather than on soil.},
 year = {2026}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Lead Exceedance in Vegetables Grown on 
Guideline-compliant Soils: Heavy Metal Contamination and Human Health Risk in Cumilla, Bangladesh
AU  - Khandaker Nadia Anjum
AU  - Subrato Roy
AU  - Most Zakiya Islam
AU  - Md. Sajjad Hossain
Y1  - 2026/10/29
PY  - 2026
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
T2  - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences
JF  - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences
JO  - International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences
SP  - 219
EP  - 240
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2469-7885
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijaas.20261205.15
AB  - Cumilla district combines intensive year-round vegetable production with an export processing zone, dense brick-kiln clusters and heavily trafficked national highways, yet no systematic soil-vegetable survey of toxic metals has been reported for the district. This study quantified copper (Cu), chromium (Cr) and lead (Pb) in five widely grown vegetables (potato, tomato, chili pepper, cauliflower and cabbage) and their matched surface field soils (0-15 cm) across six upazilas spanning an industrial-to-rural gradient, and tested the hypothesis that crop contamination tracks soil contamination closely enough for soil monitoring to serve as a proxy for food safety screening. Thirty matched crop-soil pairs (60 composites) were digested in HNO3: HClO4 (2: 1) and analysed by flame atomic absorption spectrophotometry; the method returned recoveries of 94.7-102.3%, relative standard deviations of 1.7-2.9% and determination coefficients above 0.999. Concentrations in vegetables (dry weight) ranged from 3.92 to 15.98 mg/kg for Cu, 0.50 to 2.96 mg/kg for Cr and 7.27 to 21.90 mg/kg for Pb; matched soils ranged from 9.78 to 24.93, 20.23 to 88.00 and 10.84 to 31.59 mg/kg, respectively. Every field soil complied with FAO/WHO agricultural soil guidelines for all three metals, yet every vegetable composite exceeded the 0.3 mg/kg maximum allowable limit for Pb. Pollution load indices exceeded unity in all 30 vegetables (1.10-2.55) and remained below unity in all 30 soils (0.20-0.46), while potential ecological risk indices indicated uniformly low ecological risk. Hazard indices exceeded unity and cumulative cancer risks exceeded 10-4 in every sample, with Pb contributing 78-90% of the non-carcinogenic hazard. A fresh-weight sensitivity analysis reduced these magnitudes roughly nine-fold but did not alter the exceedance conclusions. Soil compliance therefore coexists with crop non-compliance, and regulatory screening in Bangladesh must be based on direct analysis of the edible crop rather than on soil.
VL  - 12
IS  - 5
ER  -

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