Yes, organic brown rice contains arsenic, and switching to organic does not lower the amount. Brown rice averages about 154 parts per billion (ppb) of inorganic arsenic, the form most concerning for health. That number holds whether the rice is grown organically or conventionally, because arsenic is absorbed from soil and water, not from synthetic pesticides or fertilizers.
Why Organic Doesn’t Make a Difference
Arsenic is a naturally occurring element in soil and groundwater. Rice plants are uniquely efficient at pulling it up through their roots because they grow in flooded paddies, where arsenic dissolves more readily. This process happens regardless of farming method. Researchers at Dartmouth’s Toxic Metals Superfund Research Program put it plainly: organic and non-organic rice have about the same amount of arsenic.
That said, organic growing conditions don’t guarantee high levels either. In one large market basket survey published in Environmental Science & Technology, an organic brown rice from California had the lowest total arsenic of any sample tested (0.10 micrograms per gram). But that had everything to do with California’s soil and nothing to do with the organic label. Any rice growing in arsenic-laden soil soaks up arsenic, organic or not.
Why Brown Rice Has More Than White
Inorganic arsenic concentrates in the bran and germ, the outer layers of the grain. White rice has those layers milled away, which is why it averages around 92 ppb of inorganic arsenic compared to brown rice’s 154 ppb. Brown rice retains roughly 67% more inorganic arsenic than white rice from the same source. The tradeoff is that the bran also carries fiber, magnesium, and B vitamins, so this isn’t a simple “white is better” equation.
Where the Rice Grows Matters More Than How
The single biggest factor in how much arsenic your rice contains is geography. Rice grown in the south-central United States (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri) averages 1.76 times more arsenic than rice grown in California. The reason is historical: during the cotton era, farmers in that region used arsenic-based pesticides to control boll weevils, and residual arsenic still contaminates the soil generations later. South-central rice samples averaged 0.30 micrograms per gram of total arsenic, compared to 0.17 for California samples.
Imported rice can be lower still. Both U.S. and U.K. researchers have found that basmati rice from India and Pakistan and jasmine rice from Thailand consistently contain the least arsenic. If reducing your exposure is a priority, where the rice was grown is a far more useful filter than whether it carries an organic certification.
Health Risks From Long-Term Exposure
Food is the largest source of arsenic exposure for most people, and rice is the second-largest dietary contributor after seafood. The CDC estimates the average American takes in about 3.5 micrograms of inorganic arsenic per day from all food sources combined. At the levels found in rice, you’re not going to experience acute poisoning, which requires doses thousands of times higher. The concern is cumulative exposure over years.
Long-term intake of inorganic arsenic is linked to a distinctive pattern of skin changes, including darkened patches and small wart-like growths on the palms, soles, and torso. More seriously, chronic exposure increases the risk of cancers of the skin, bladder, lungs, and liver. It can also reduce red and white blood cell production (leading to fatigue), damage blood vessels, and impair nerve function, sometimes causing a pins-and-needles sensation in the hands and feet. These effects are dose-dependent, meaning the more arsenic you consume over time, the greater the risk.
How Cooking Methods Reduce Arsenic
The standard absorption method of cooking rice (using just enough water for the grains to soak up) retains most of the arsenic. But a simple modification can cut it significantly. Researchers at the University of Sheffield tested a “parboil and absorb” method: boil the rice in a large pot of water for five minutes, drain the water, then finish cooking with fresh water at a lower ratio. This removed 54% of inorganic arsenic from brown rice and 73% from white rice. Rinsing rice before cooking or pre-soaking it also helps, but parboiling first was the most effective home-friendly approach tested.
For brown rice specifically, that 54% reduction brings the average inorganic arsenic from roughly 154 ppb down to about 70 ppb, well below the FDA’s action level of 100 ppb set for infant rice cereals.
Practical Ways to Lower Your Exposure
- Choose California-grown, basmati, or jasmine rice. These consistently test lowest in arsenic regardless of organic status.
- Use the parboil-and-drain method. Boil rice in excess water, discard it, then finish with fresh water. This is the most effective home cooking technique available.
- Rotate your grains. Oats, barley, millet, quinoa, and farro don’t accumulate arsenic the way rice does. Swapping rice for other whole grains a few times a week meaningfully reduces your exposure.
- Be especially careful with infants. The FDA set its 100 ppb action level specifically for infant rice cereals because babies eat more relative to their body weight. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that iron-fortified rice cereal not be the default first grain. Oat, barley, and multigrain cereals are good alternatives.
None of this means you need to stop eating brown rice. It remains a nutritious whole grain. But if you’ve been paying a premium for organic brown rice specifically to avoid contaminants like arsenic, that particular benefit isn’t supported by the evidence. Your money is better spent choosing rice from low-arsenic growing regions and cooking it in a way that pulls the arsenic out.