Abstract: Objective To investigate cadmium contamination in retailed rice in Guangdong Province and make preliminary dietary exposure assessment of cadmium intake. Methods According to simple random sampling method, 30－50 rice samples were randomly collected from supermarkets, stalls and markets in 21 prefecture level cities and Shunde District in Guangdong Province in 2012 Cadmium concentrations in samples were examined according to GB/T 5009.15－2003. Based on the dietary consumption data from survey of the nutrition and health status among residents in Guangdong in 2002, rice dietary exposure levels of cadmium at general consumption (P50) and high consumption (P97.5) were calculated separately for different age and gender groups. Results A total of 1 060 rice samples were collected in various regions of Guangdong Province Cadmium concentrations ranged from 0.000 5 to 2.100 0 mg/kg , the median was 0.078 0 mg/kg. Cadmium content in 48 samples (4.5%) exceeded the national standard (0.2 mg/kg). The medians of cadmium in rice and the exceeding stangard rates were staticstically different in the 22 cities or district（all P<0.05). The highest content of cadmium in rice (median 0.188 0 mg/kg) and highest exceeding standard rate (42.0%, 21/50) were found in Shaoguan City, The medians of cadmium in rice samples collected in cities and villages were 0.075 0 and 0.083 0 mg/kg, respectively(P>0.05). The average monthly intake of cadmium from rice by the total survey population was 12.59μg/(kg?bw), 0.50 times of the provisional tolerated monthly intake (PTMI). Cadmium intake in the children group of 2－7 years old was 26.07μg/(kg?bw)，exceeding PTMI. For those at the high level (P＜97.5) of rice consumption, cadmium intake was 23.34μg/(kg?bw), 0.93 times of PTMI. Conclusion The average concentration of cadmium in retailed rice in Guangdong was not high and the exceeding standard rate was 4.5%. The rice collected in some cities had higher cadmium content In general, the cadmium intake from rice by the survey population was safe More attention should be paid to the dietary cadmium intake for children and those who may consume high level of rice.