Assessment of selected nutrients and toxic metals in fruits, soils and irrigation waters of Awara Melka and Nura Era farms, Ethiopia

The objective of the present study was to determine the levels of essential nutrients (Na, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn) and toxic metals (Pb and Cd) in selected varieties of fruits (banana, grape, guava, mandarin and orange), farmland soils and irrigation waters to assess nutritional impact on health. The freeze dried fruits were digested using HNO3 and HClO4 and the levels of the elements determined using flame atomic absorption spectrometer. The highest amount of K (3480) and Mg (281) and the lowest amount of Na (6.4) and Ca (75) µg/g were obtained in banana compared to other analyzed fruits. Cd was detected in guava (0.2 µg/g), orange (0.3 µg/g) and mandarin (0.1 µg/g), but not detected in banana and grape. Pb was not detected in all the fruits. Appreciable amount of total ascorbic acid was found in guava (1170 µg/g) compared to that of other fruits. Furthermore, farmland soils and irrigation waters were analyzed for the selected metals and physico-chemical properties of soils including pH, electrical conductivity, cation exchange capacity, texture and available phosphorus determined to elucidate factors controlling the availability of metals in fruits. Applying statistical packages, analysis of variances and Pearson correlation, links between metal levels in fruits and those in soil and water samples were evaluated.