Multiresidue Monitoring of Pesticides in Domestic and Imported Foods Collected in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan

Abstract

During 7 years' monitoring survey (April 1995 - March 2002) of pesticide residues in agricultural products, 1092 samples (701 domestic; 391 imported) collected in Hyogo prefecture, Japan were analyzed. The number of pesticide tested increased from 107 in fiscal year (FY) 1995 to 228 in FY 2001. The purpose of this study was to promote consumer safety by excluding the food illegally containing pesticide residues from the markets. Overall, 49% of domestic and 31% of imported samples contained no detectable residues. Multiple residues were detected in 31% of domestic and 53% of imported samples. Of the detectable residues above 0.01μg/g, 53% in domestic and 37% in imported samples were <10% of the maximum residue limit (MRL). Violations of the MRL were observed in 4 samples. Of all the samples, 2.4% contained more than 5 different pesticides. Tomatoes, strawberries, apples, and citrus fruits tended to have more multiple residues with the combination of insecticides and fungicides. The imported frozen vegetables from China, such as spinach and baby kidney bean, contained multiple insecticides.