Iron and tin content of canned fruit juices and nectars

A survey of the iron and tin content of twelve different types of canned fruit juices and nectars revealed that, of the 122 cans examined, 23 (or 18·9%) contianed iron in excess of 15 mg kg^?1 and 16 (or 13·1%) contained tin in excess of 250 mg kg^?1. Apple juice and tomato juice were found to contain particularly high levels of iron, the maximum level recorded being 42·6 mg kg^?1. Mango juice and orange juice exhibited significant non-compliance with recommended Codex tolerance limits for tin. Statistical analysis showed that, at the 5% probability level, the mean iron contents of products packed in completely unlacquered and end-lacquered cans were not significantly different from each other, but were significantly lower than the mean iron content of products packed in fully lacquered cans. The mean tin content fell in the order unlacquered > end-lacquered > fully lacquered cans.