Inorganic contaminants and composition analysis of commercial feed grade mineral compounds available in Costa Rica

Background: Heavy metals such as arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd), are potential toxic substances that may incorporate in productive systems in multiple ways including contaminated feedstuff. In this regard, we hypothesize that the main input of heavy metal contamination include mineral feed ingredients which, in turn, are included in compound feed to meet animals’ nutritional requirements. Hence, we offer a comprehensive heavy metal determination on imported feed grade...