title: Artificial radioactivity of Finnish vegetables in the 2000s.
abstract: A survey on long-lived artificial radionuclides (137)Cs and (90)Sr in vegetables produced in Finland was carried out in 2009-2010. The mean (137)Cs concentrations of all the outdoor vegetables were well below 0.5 Bq kg(-1), ranging from <0.01 to 8.15 Bq kg(-1) (fresh weight). The highest (137)Cs contents were found in potato and root vegetables. The uneven distribution of the (137)Cs deposition after the Chernobyl accident in 1986 was still seen in the (137)Cs contents of outdoor vegetables. The (137)Cs contents of greenhouse vegetables varied from <0.01 to 9.3 Bq kg(-1), and the highest concentrations were found in organic lettuce grown in peat pots. The concentrations of (90)Sr in the vegetables varied from 0.0087 to 0.17 Bq kg(-1) fresh weight. The mean effective dose resulting from (137)Cs and (90)Sr in vegetables in 2009-2010 was <0.3 µSv a(-1) and poses no health risk to the consumers.
authors.affiliation: STUK-Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kostiainen
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Turtiainen
mesh_terms: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D005387:Finland; D013326:Strontium Radioisotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D014675:Vegetables / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D002588:Cesium Radioisotopes; D013326:Strontium Radioisotopes