Michigan State University AgBioResearch scientist Hui Li has been awarded a $475,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to study human exposure to the harmful chemicals present in fresh produce.
Addressing a primary aspect of food safety, Li’s research will focus on produce absorption of pharmaceutical and personal care products, commonly known as chemicals of emerging concern, or CECs. Consumption of these chemicals may lead to increased antibiotic resistance and other health issues.
A better understanding of how vegetables absorb CECs from soil and water will help the scientific community in its efforts to reduce these chemical risks.
“The human health consequences of chronic exposure to an undefined mixture of pharmaceuticals designed to be bioactive at low concentrations are largely unknown, but potentially of enormous significance,” Li said.
Li will use new, state-of-the-art equipment to analyze various CEC levels and determine how soil management and irrigation practices can decrease absorption of these substances.
The three-year project is made possible by the USDA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative. It will extend through October 2018 in collaboration with MSU AgBioResearch scientists Stephen Boyd, Wei Zhang and Ray Hammerschmidt, all from the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences.