ISHS Acta Horticulturae 143: VIII African Symposium on Horticultural Crops
ON THE PROBLEM OF PESTICIDE RESIDUES IN VEGETABLES AND FRUITS |
| Author: | G.A. El Zorgani |
| Abstract:
The increasing usage of pesticides in the control of pests of vegetables and fruits is the cause of serious concern because of the risks to human health that could result from the consumption of pesticide contaminated products. Most developed countries have regulations defining the maximum permissible residue limits (MRL) in food commodities. Because of the active movement of food in world trade, the UN organizations FAO and WHO have regularly undertaken the issue of such MRL lists on many food items including vegetables and fruits. The report describes in detail the scientific procedures followed in the derivation of MRLs. These are based on intensive toxicological studies of candidate compounds in laboratory animals. For practical use, necessary waiting times between pesticide application and marketing of the crop are defined. In Sudan, studies have been initiated to determine the fate in plants and waiting times for more than 20 pesticides which are recommended for use on 8 major vegetable crops. Technical aid from UN IAEA is provided in order to speed up these studies through the use of radio-labelled pesticides. | |
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