Objective To investigate chlorate contamination level in infant formula sold in Shanghai， and to evaluate the dietary exposure risk to infants in Shanghai.

Methods With the risk monitoring data of chlorate in infant formula sold in Shanghai in 2020， combined with the dietary consumption data of infants， the dietary exposure of chlorate in infant formula was assessed via the point assessment method.

Results In 2020， the overall detection rate of chlorate in 120 infant formula samples was 98.3% （118/120）， the mean content was 124.5 μg⋅kg^-1， the 50 percentile value was 64.6 μg⋅kg^-1， and the maximum value was 1 475.0 μg⋅kg^-1. The mean and 95 percentile value of daily chlorate intake from infant formula for infants aged 0‒36 months in Shanghai were 1.10 and 1.84 μg⋅kg^-1， accounting for 36.7% and 61.3% of the tolerable daily intake （TDI） of chlorate （3μg⋅kg^-1）， respectively. The mean， 50 percentile value and 95 percentile value of daily chlorate exposure of infants in different month-age groups （0‒6 months， 6‒12 months， 12‒36 months） through infant formula were lower than the TDI value.

Conclusion The health risk of daily chlorate intake from infant formula for infants and young children aged 0‒36 months in Shanghai is at an acceptable level.