Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in retail fish and shellfish samples purchased from Canadian markets

Fish and shellfish retail samples (n = 122) were purchased from three Canadian cities in the winter of 2002 and analyzed for a total of 18 polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners. The samples (salmon, trout, tilapia, Arctic char, mussels, oysters, shrimp, and crab) represented the range of fish and shellfish commercially available to Canadian consumers at the time of purchase. Trout and salmon (geometric mean SigmaPBDE = 1600 and 1500 pg/g, wet weight, respectively) were found to contain significantly higher amounts of PBDEs than the mussel, tilapia, and shrimp groups (geometric mean SigmaPBDE = 260, 180, and 48 pg/g, wet weight, respectively). These differences in SigmaPBDE concentrations among fish and shellfish products were partly driven by differences in lipid content among the samples. Mean SigmaPBDE concentrations in domestic samples were also significantly greater than in imported samples, possibly reflecting global environmental distribution of PBDEs. These concentration differences will contribute to variations in dietary exposure to PBDEs when assorted fish and shellfish items from various origins are consumed.