Exposure Assessment of Tropane Alkaloids via Barley Grain-Based Products Among Serbian Population

Dietary exposure to tropane alkaloids (TAs) in Serbia remains insufficiently investigated, while awareness among consumers and agricultural producers of potential exposure and related health risks, particularly for children, is low. Barley, a cereal widely used in food production, is still not included in the EU and Serbian regulations on maximum allowable atropine and scopolamine concentrations in food. However, the CONTAM panel established the group ARfD of 0.016 µg/kg bw/day for the sum of atropine and scopolamine. Therefore, a study was conducted on barley samples from organic and conventional production systems, in order to quantify the presence of atropine and scopolamine by LC-MS/MS. In all of the tested samples, both TAs were detected at concentrations above the LOD. The most contaminated sample was from the organic production, with the sum of atropine and scopolamine being 3.2 µg/kg. In order to evaluate the consumer risk from At and Sc in barley-based products, the EFSA framework for acute dietary exposure assessment was applied. The exposure was assessed for seven population groups consuming barley-based foods and beverages: toddlers, children, adolescents, adults, elderly, vegetarians, and pregnant women. The estimated daily intake, calculated according to the three consumption scenarios, did not exceed the established ARfD value. Since barley is not the only source of TA intake in Serbia, a prospective study on TA exposure should be performed in order to monitor TA concentrations, estimate exposure, and manage the risk.