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Volume 13
Issue 12
10.3390/toxics13121013
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Article

Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Tomatoes Grown in Sludge-Amended Peat: Uptake, Translocation and Risk Assessment

by
Eirini Andreasidou
1,2,
Ana Kovačič
1,2,
Lorena Manzano-Sánchez
3,
David Heath
1,
Marina Pintar
4,
Nina Kacjan Maršič
4,
Urška Blaznik
5,
Amadeo Rodríguez Fernández-Alba
3,
Maria Dolores Hernando
6 and
Ester Heath
1,2,*
1
Department of Environmental Sciences, Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova Cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
2
International Postgraduate School Jožef Stefan, Jamova Cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
3
European Union Reference Laboratory for Pesticide Residues in Fruits and Vegetables, Department of Chemistry and Physics, Agrifood Campus of International Excellence (ceiA3), University of Almería, La Cañada de San Urbano, 04120 Almería, Spain
4
Department of Agronomy, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
5
Environmental Health Centre, National Institute of Public Health, Trubarjeva 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
6
Department of Desertification and Geo-ecology, Experimental Station of Arid Zones, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, La Cañada de San Urbano, 04120 Almería, Spain
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Toxics 2025, 13(12), 1013; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13121013 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 14 October 2025 / Revised: 19 November 2025 / Accepted: 20 November 2025 / Published: 22 November 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioremediation of Pollutants in Sewage Sludge)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Although sewage sludge in agriculture can promote circular economy goals, concerns remain about the transfer of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) into crops and soils. This study evaluated the uptake and risk of 27 CECs in tomatoes cultivated in peat substrate amended with stabilised anaerobically digested (dried) sludge from a local municipal wastewater treatment plant at two rates corresponding to nitrogen and nitrogen/potassium requirements. Peat substrate served as the control. Additional treatments included CEC-spiked media and peat amended with non-dried sludge. Analysis was performed with LC–MS/MS. In tomato fruits, ibuprofen (15.8 ng/g) and triclosan (17.9 ng/g) were quantified at the low amendment rate, while caffeine (381 ng/g), carbamazepine (18.1 ng/g), ciprofloxacin (306 ng/g) and ibuprofen (5.3 ng/g) were quantified at the high amendment rate. Dietary exposure estimates were below the health-based reference values for most compounds; however, a potential risk was identified for bisphenol S when non-dried anaerobically digested sludge was applied. Soil risk quotients (RQ > 1) for several CECs at the end of the experiment indicate possible ecological concern. These findings emphasise that monitoring CECs in sludge-amended soil remains essential to ensure the safety of sludge reuse in agriculture.
Keywords: Solanum lycopersicum L.; bioaccumulation; pharmaceuticals; personal care products; bisphenols; pesticides; hormones; LC-MS/MS; dietary exposure; ecological risk assessment Solanum lycopersicum L.; bioaccumulation; pharmaceuticals; personal care products; bisphenols; pesticides; hormones; LC-MS/MS; dietary exposure; ecological risk assessment

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MDPI and ACS Style

Andreasidou, E.; Kovačič, A.; Manzano-Sánchez, L.; Heath, D.; Pintar, M.; Kacjan Maršič, N.; Blaznik, U.; Rodríguez Fernández-Alba, A.; Hernando, M.D.; Heath, E. Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Tomatoes Grown in Sludge-Amended Peat: Uptake, Translocation and Risk Assessment. Toxics 2025, 13, 1013. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13121013

AMA Style

Andreasidou E, Kovačič A, Manzano-Sánchez L, Heath D, Pintar M, Kacjan Maršič N, Blaznik U, Rodríguez Fernández-Alba A, Hernando MD, Heath E. Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Tomatoes Grown in Sludge-Amended Peat: Uptake, Translocation and Risk Assessment. Toxics. 2025; 13(12):1013. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13121013

Chicago/Turabian Style

Andreasidou, Eirini, Ana Kovačič, Lorena Manzano-Sánchez, David Heath, Marina Pintar, Nina Kacjan Maršič, Urška Blaznik, Amadeo Rodríguez Fernández-Alba, Maria Dolores Hernando, and Ester Heath. 2025. "Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Tomatoes Grown in Sludge-Amended Peat: Uptake, Translocation and Risk Assessment" Toxics 13, no. 12: 1013. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13121013

APA Style

Andreasidou, E., Kovačič, A., Manzano-Sánchez, L., Heath, D., Pintar, M., Kacjan Maršič, N., Blaznik, U., Rodríguez Fernández-Alba, A., Hernando, M. D., & Heath, E. (2025). Contaminants of Emerging Concern in Tomatoes Grown in Sludge-Amended Peat: Uptake, Translocation and Risk Assessment. Toxics, 13(12), 1013. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13121013

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