An inverse correlation between the concentration of DDE in human breast milk samples and the duration of breast feeding prompted the present study of the effects of DDE administration on the lactational performance of primiparous rats. Daily doses of 10 mg p,p'-DDE/kg body weight were given to virgin female Sprague-Dawley rats 5 d/wk for 5 wk prior to mating and continued throughout the gestation and lactation periods. Lactation capacity was determined by monitoring neonatal growth and by measuring milk production, milk composition (total protein, total lipid, and lactose), and mammary-gland weight and nucleic acid content on d 9 and 20 postpartum. Gross toxicity was assessed by monitoring clinical signs and body weight of the dams, and by measuring organ weights of the dams on lactation d 9 and 20. Histopathological evaluation of the mammary glands and selected organs in the dams and pups was also performed. The dose level of DDE employed was apparently not toxic to the dams and did not have a pronounced effect on neonatal mortality. No significant differences between DDE-treated and control groups were observed for any of the lactation parameters, even though the concentration of DDE in the milk of treated rats was approximately two orders of magnitude greater than the upper range of the DDE levels measured in human milk samples. These findings indicate that DDE does not adversely affect lactation or neonatal growth in Sprague-Dawley rats at the dose level used in this study.