Cuantificación del contenido de cadmio y plomo en granos de café de cinco zonas del Ecuador, y el desarrollo de una estrategia de mitigación biotecnológica

Abstract

Ecuador is a country with a rich coffee tradition and is one of the few nations in the world that produces both Arabica and Robusta varieties. For Ecuadorians coffee cultivation has significant economic, social, environmental, and human health importance. Therefore, this research is focused on determining the concentration of heavy metals (Cd and Pb) in the beans, husks, and coffee grounds of Arabica coffee produced in the provinces of Manabí, Los Ríos, El Oro, Loja, and Pichincha. A simple random sampling was conducted obtaining five 1kg samples from the harvest of each province. The analysis of heavy metal concentration was performed using Microwave-Assisted Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES). To identify significant differences in metal concentrations a multifactorial ANOVA statistical analysis was performed. Additionally, a critical review was conducted to propose a strategy for the bioremediation of Cd and Pb highlighting the most relevant points for its implementation in the research.

The results of the study revealed significant differences in lead concentrations among provinces with the coffee husk from the El Oro region showing a concentration of 2.788 mg/L, followed by the husks from Los Ríos and Pichincha with concentrations of 1.11 mg/L. These concentrations were compared with the established INEN 1122 Standards confirming that the samples from El Oro, Los Ríos, and Pichincha do not comply with the permissible limits already established.