According to the latest report published on Wednesday 25 July by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), 96% of food samples analysed in the framework of the EFSA report were within limits for pesticide residues allowed by EU legislation, a slight fall.
The 2018 report summarises the results of official controls made by the member states and the control programme coordinated by the EU (EUCP), and Iceland and Norway in 2016, and analyses the risk of consumer exposure to pesticide residues.
The latest figures and an acute (short-term) and chronic (long-term) dietary risk assessment, based on the results of the EUCP programme, leads EFSA to conclude that the risks to consumers are low.
Of the total of 84,657 samples assessed for 791 pesticides, 96.2% were within legal limits (97.2% in 2015), 50.7% were free of quantifiable residues (compared with 53.3%) and 45.5% contained quantifiable residues not exceeding the level of maximum residues (LMR) allowed by EU legislation (Regulation (EU) 396/2005). While 45.5% is higher than in the 2017 report (43.9%) (see EUROPE 11769) and this figure by itself says nothing about the cocktail of pesticides present in large quantities: in 41% of the samples of apple, for example, explains the report.
Of the samples of organic food, 98.7% were within legal limits; 83.1% of the samples were free of quantifiable residues.
Of the 1,676 samples of food intended for infants and young children, 98.1% were within the limits permitted in EU legislation; 89.8% of the samples were free of quantifiable residues
For 2016, 12,168 samples were assessed for 165 pesticides in a basket of eleven products, namely apples, head cabbage, leeks, lettuce, peaches, strawberries, tomatoes, rye, wine, cow’s milk and swine fat.
The highest excesses were found for apples (2.7%) and tomatoes (2.6%). The lowest residue excess rates were identified for rye (0.7%), followed by head cabbage (1.1%) and strawberries (1.8%). The EFSA recently recommended a review of the upper limits for some types of pesticide residues likely to be present in food for babies (see EUROPE 12054). The report can be found at://bit.ly/2LsP9z5. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)