Determination of seven pesticide residues in Mimosa scabrella honeydew honey from Brazil by GC-MS

Abstract

Pesticides are known to cause numerous negative effects on the health of humans and animals, either through direct contact or through the consumption of contaminated food. In Brazil, mainly due to the many pesticides allowed for use, these substances are commonly found in different food matrices, such as honeys. Due to these aspects and the nonexistence of information about pesticides in Brazilian honeydew honey, this study was conducted to determine seven pesticide residues in Mimosa scabrella honeydew honey (MHH) from the southern region of Brazil by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). No pesticide residues were found in honey samples from the Paraná state. On the other hand, in six of the fifteen samples analyzed from Santa Catarina state, atrazine was determined at levels below 9 µg kg-1. These values were lower than the current maximum residue limits (MRLs; 0.05 mg kg-1) for honeys. Moreover, τ-fluvalinate was detected in one sample with a content lower than the limit of quantification. Thus, the MHH evaluated were free or with low levels of the seven pesticides investigated, and in all cases, concentrations were below the established MRLs. In addition, these results also confirmed that the analyzed MHH can be exported to other countries since the samples comply with the limits for the evaluated pesticides.