Relationship between azinphos-methyl usage and residues on grapes and in wine in Australia

Abstract

Azinphos-methyl was applied to Shiraz winegrapes by commercial high-volume and hand-held sprayers during seasons 1993/94 and 1994/95. Residue levels in grapes resulting from treatments applied by commercial sprayer were below the maximum residue level (MRL) of 2 mg kg -1 for grapes in Australia, whereas residues resulting from treatments applied by hand-held sprayer still exceeded the MRL five weeks after final application. There was a strong correlation for most treatments between treatment concentration of azinphos-methyl and residue level in grapes, and in wine made from treated grapes. Applied at the recommended rate (1.2 g litre -1 wettable powder (WP) and 2.4 ml litre -1 suspension concentrate (SC)) by commercial high-volume sprayer, azinphos-methyl residue levels in wine were well below the MRL, and below the MRLs of most importing countries, except Denmark and Sweden. When applied by hand-held sprayer, residue levels in wine were 5.9-29.6 fold higher than those previously obtained by commercial application of insecticide. Since wines are often blends from different grape blocks and grape-growing districts, in practice, this is unlikely to be of concern. Wine made from grapes treated by commercial sprayer showed no detectable residues of azinphos-methyl after one year of storage. In both years, residue levels in grapes of both formulations of azinphos-methyl fluctuated during the five-week post-treatment period, although there was an overall downward trend. Previously unrecorded systemicity in azinphos-methyl was demonstrated in laboratory studies with barley seedlings, and this may explain these fluctuating data in grapes. The reduction of azinphos-methyl residues in grapes over time appears to be a complex phenomenon involving translocation of active ingredient combined with an increase in the size and weight of berries, producing fluctuating residue levels.