The instrument
This page records the heavy-metal maximum levels set by General Standard for Contaminants and Toxins in Food and Feed, the instrument of Codex Alimentarius Commission (Food and Agriculture Organization / World Health Organization), 1995. Every value below is transcribed into the Heavy Metal Index register from the primary text and is the value an HMTc standard cites when this jurisdiction binds a certification limit. It is a record of law, not an HMTc threshold.
Maximum levels
All values µg/kg (ppb), in the basis the instrument states. 6 maximum levels across 2 analytes and 6 product categories, grouped by analyte and ordered by limit.
| Limit µg/kg | Basis | Product scope | Provision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lead (Pb)5 limits | |||
| 10 | as consumed | Infant formula, formula for special medical purposes intended for infants and follow-up formula | Worldwide-ingest 2026-08-03 (verified). Basis detail: 0.01 mg/kg. Portion: Whole commodity |
| 20 | as sold | Cereal-based foods for infants and young children (up to 12 months and 12-36 months) | Worldwide-ingest 2026-08-03 (verified). Basis detail: 0.02 mg/kg. Portion: 'Whole commodity as… |
| 20 | as consumed | Ready-to-eat meals for infants and young children (up to 12 months and 12-36 months); corresponds to canned baby foods CXS 73-1981 | Worldwide-ingest 2026-08-03 (verified). Basis detail: 0.02 mg/kg. Portion: 'Whole commodity' (r… |
| 30 | as consumed | Fruit juices (whole commodity or reconstituted to original concentration, ready-to-drink; also applies to nectars; note explicitly extends M | Worldwide-ingest 2026-08-03 (verified). Basis detail: 0.03 mg/kg. Portion: 'Whole commodity (no… |
| 40 | as consumed | Grape juice (whole commodity or reconstituted to original concentration, ready-to-drink; also applies to nectars; note explicitly extends ML | Worldwide-ingest 2026-08-03 (verified). Basis detail: 0.04 mg/kg. Portion: 'Whole commodity (no… |
| Tin (Sn)1 limit | |||
| 250000 | product as placed on market | canned foods | CXS 193-1995 tin ML for canned foods. |
Where HMTc cites it
Cells where this instrument holds the strictest government value in force among credible regulators, and therefore binds a published HMTc limit.
A limit recorded above binds nothing today only because another government holds a stricter value for every published cell. It may still bind later, as other jurisdictions relax or as a new subcategory is published.
How this interacts with HMTc
HMTc certification standards adopt the strictest existing maximum level set by any credible government, applied cell-by-cell. Where this instrument holds the strictest value for a (product, analyte) cell, it binds the HMTc limit and the standard cites this page. This page does not set or justify any HMTc threshold; it records the sovereign requirement the program measures against.
A reference page is a record of law, not an HMTc threshold. It states what a government requires; the standard page states what the program requires, and names which instrument binds each cell.