Mitigating Lead Exposure in Colombia: Lead-Contaminated Cookware

The Mitigating Lead Exposure in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) project seeks to reduce lead exposure in Asia, Africa, and Latin America from exposure sources such as metal and ceramic cookware, adulterated spices, environmentally unsound used lead-acid battery (ULAB) recycling, and cosmetics. The overarching objective is to assist governments and stakeholders in strengthening institutional capacities, programs, and policies to effectively assess, prioritize, and mitigate lead exposure. Project countries include Colombia, Egypt, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Peru, and the Philippines.

In Colombia, the Mitigating Lead Exposure in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) project is focused on reducing lead exposure from the exposure source lead-contaminated cookware.

Pure Earth’s global screening of more than 5,000 samples of consumer products sold in markets in 25 countries documented that 45% of ceramic cookware samples and 52% of metallic cookware samples were contaminated with high levels of lead. The Andean Region contains the highest estimated mean BLLs in Latin America (6 μg/dL in Peru) and some of the highest prevalence of lead-contaminated metallic cookware in the RMS (Peru 69% of samples tested, Colombia 40%). For ceramics, the prevalence of lead-contaminated items was Colombia (50% of samples tested), and Peru (42%). 

In Latin America, ceramic cookware is used for cooking, food preparation, and service, presenting a high risk that lead will leach into food. Regulatory frameworks in the region are inadequate or, in many cases, ignored. Furthermore, governments do not have the capacity to assess and monitor manufacturers, supply chains, and distributors, critical for adequate enforcement of any new or existing regulations and policies.

Expected Outcomes:

1. Estimate prevalence of metal and ceramic cookware that exceed the national thresholds (if any) of Peru and Colombia.
2. Estimate prevalence of metal and ceramic cookware that exceed a reasonable safety threshold (TBD) and can be translated to regulatory limit in both metal and ceramic cookware.

Project Activities:

1. Key stakeholder and production company mapping, Ceramics & Aluminum Cookware in Colombia & Peru
2. Sampling of ceramic and metallic cookware for Pb concentration
3. Report on conclusions and recommendations.