There is no arsenic was found in the local rice samples it tested, Industrial Technology Institute (ITI) said.

According to the Director of ITI, Dr. A.M. Mubarak, the rice samples submitted to the ITI by the Rice Research Institute were tested using the hydride generation - atomic absorption spectrometry (HG-AAS).

No detectable arsenic was present in the samples tested by the particular technique, the Director said.

The rice samples have been obtained from the major rice producing districts in the country, according to the Deputy Director General of the Batalegoda Rice Research Institute Mr. S.W. Abeysekara.

Rice samples have been obtained from 17 districts in the low country dry zones that have been earmarked as the major paddy producing districts.

According to Abeysekara, 48 random samples of paddy from the mills in the open market have been used for the testing. The samples have been processed by the ITI.

Studies have shown that arsenic, carried into rice fields through contaminated irrigation water, accumulates in the top soil from where the rice plants take it up thorough the roots, contaminating the grain. Arsenic is also a naturally occurring substance in soil.
A recent study has found that arsenic levels in long-grain rice grown in United States are the highest found among rice from different countries.

According to Dr. Mubarak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has set a standard for water at 10 ppb (parts per billion).