Lead contamination of wild game meat from the viewpoint of veterinary supervision

Lead (Pb) is commonly found in food and is characterised as a contaminant. Although the concentration of Pb in the environment has been significantly reduced as a consequence of the elimination of leaded petrol and the adoption of other measures in recent decades, contamination with lead ammunition still remains an unregulated source of Pb in wild game. Wild game meat may be one of the dominant sources of human exposure to lead, especially for those consuming large amounts of game. In the years 2009–2011, the average Pb content detected in the Czech Republic was 3.80 mg·kg-1 (median 0.01 mg·kg-1) in the meat of wild game mammals and 0.63 mg·kg-1 (median 0.03 mg·kg-1) in the meat of game birds.