Cadmium in bread, vegetables, fruits… what is this dangerous poison discovered in Forbidden Zone ?

On January 26, 2025, the show Zone interdite revealed that exposure to cadmium, a heavy metal, was far from harmless. Like lead or mercury, this substance is present in our food and puts us in danger.

Soil pollution cannot be avoided. On Sunday evening, the show Zone interdite revealed the presence of an invisible poison: cadmium, a heavy metal. This product, classified as carcinogenic by the Cric (International Agency for Research on Cancer), is found everywhere in our plates: bread, fruits, vegetables… We explain.

Invisible, but very present

During a year-long investigation, our colleagues found cadmium in many foods produced and consumed in France. Starting with bread. Between 0.013 and 0.035 micrograms (1 gram = 1 million micrograms) per gram were detected in sandwich bread, seeded bread, wholemeal bread and other baguettes. Artisanal or industrial, the 41 references analyzed contained this heavy metal.

For Xavier Deleu, producer of the program interviewed by Ouest-France : “The presence of heavy metals, such as cadmium, is neither exceptional nor anecdotal.” Greatly forgotten after mercury and lead, this poison has nothing to envy its cousins ​​in terms of harmful effects.

0.36% of adults ingest too much. A rate that rises to 14% for children, and up to 36% for those under three, deplores ANSESThe cause is phosphorus fertilizers, used since the 19th century and present in our soils ever since. Among them, products imported from Morocco are said to be the most concentrated in cadmium.

Cadmium, what is it ?

This heavy metal is naturally present in soils, notes ANSES, but agricultural or industrial activities such as metallurgy increase its concentration. “The main source of exposure to cadmium is food. In fact, in the soil it easily penetrates plants through their roots and thus enters the food chain.”

Once in the body, cadmium causes kidney damage and bone fragility, pulmonary damage to a lesser extent and possibly neuronal damage. It is also suspected of increasing our propensity to develop pancreatic cancer, notes Santé publique France.

And for good reason, this heavy metal is classified in the category of carcinogenic agents in humans, in group 1, by the Circ. That is to say at the same level as asbestos or solar radiation. In other words, it is certain that it increases the risk of developing cancer.