Skip to main content
EFSA Journal logoLink to EFSA Journal
. 2017 Apr 11;15(4):e04791. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2017.4791

The 2015 European Union report on pesticide residues in food

European Food Safety Authority
PMCID: PMC7009912  PMID: 32625472

Abstract

This report provides a detailed insight in the official control activities performed by EU Member States, Iceland and Norway. Overall, 97.2% of the 84,341 samples analysed in 2015 were free of quantifiable residues or contained residues within the legally permitted levels. Based on the analytical results provided by the reporting countries, a detailed data analysis was performed regarding pesticide occurrence in the most important food products consumed and the dietary risk related to the exposure of European consumers to pesticide residues. Moreover, the data were analysed with view to identify pesticides and food products that exceeded the legal limits. It also contains the findings on pesticide residues in imported food, organic products, baby food as well as results for animal products. Based on the analysis of the 2015 pesticide monitoring results, EFSA derived a number of recommendations to increase the efficiency of the European control systems to ensure a high level of consumer protection.

Keywords: pesticide residues, food control, monitoring, maximum residue levels, consumer risk assessment, Regulation (EC) No 396/2005

Short abstract

This publication is linked to the following EFSA Supporting Publications article: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2017.EN-1211/full

Supporting information

PRIMo 2015 monitoring results risk assessment

Supplement MRL exceedances 2015

Suggested citation: EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2017. The 2015 European Union report on pesticide residues in food. EFSA Journal 2017;15(4):4791, 134 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2017.4791

Requestor: EFSA

Question number: EFSA‐Q‐2014‐00102

Acknowledgements: The Pesticides Unit wishes to thank Florence Gérault (Ministry of Agriculture, France) for her valuable proposals and the independent scientific review of this report.

Endorsed: 7 April 2017

This publication is linked to the following EFSA Supporting Publications article: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2017.EN-1211/full

References

  1. ANSES , 2016. Infant TDS Volume 2 ‐ Part 4 ‐ Results for pesticide residues, Etude de l'alimentation totale infantile Tome 2 – Partie 4, Résultats relatifs aux résidus de pesticides, Rapport d'expertise collective. Septembre 2016. Edition scientifique, 378 pp.
  2. BfR , 2016. BfR Data Collection on Processing Factors, Updated BfR Communication No. 033/2016 of 10 November 2016, Database: http://www.bfr.bund.de
  3. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2006. Conclusion regarding the peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance dimethoate. EFSA Scientific report, 84, Parma, Italy [Google Scholar]
  4. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2007a. Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Plant protection products and their Residues on a request from the Commission on the risks associated with an increase of the MRL for dieldrin on courgettes. Question N° EFSA‐Q‐2006‐172. EFSA Journal 2007, 554. 17 pp. [Google Scholar]
  5. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2007b. Reasoned opinion on the potential chronic and acute risk to consumers' health arising from proposed temporary EU MRLs. EFSA Journal 2007;5(3):32r, 1141 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2007.32r [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  6. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2010. Modification of the existing MRLs for dimethoate in various crops. EFSA Journal 2010; 8(3):1528. 35 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2010.1528 [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  7. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2013a. The 2010 European Union report on pesticide residues in food. EFSA Journal 2013;11(3):3130, 808 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2013.3130 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2013b. Scientific Opinion of the Panel on Plant Protection Products and their Residues (PPR) on the identification of pesticides to be included in cumulative assessment groups on the basis of their toxicological profile. EFSA Journal 2013;11(7):3293, 131 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2013.3293 [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  9. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2014a. The 2011 European Union report on pesticide residues in food. EFSA Journal 2014;12(5):3694, 511 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2014.3694 [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  10. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2014b. The 2012 European Union report on pesticide residues in food. EFSA Journal 2014;12(12):3942, 156 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2014.3942 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2015a. Reporting data on pesticide residues in food and feed according to Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 (2014 data collection). EFSA Journal 2015;13(7):4195, 61 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4195 [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  12. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2015b. The 2013 European Union report on pesticide residues in food. EFSA Journal 2015;13(3):4038, 169 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4038 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2015c. Conclusion on the peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance glyphosate. EFSA Journal 2015;13(11):4302, 107 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4302 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2016a. Report for 2014 on the results from the monitoring of veterinary medicinal product residues and other substances in live animals and animal products. EFSA Supporting publication 2016: EN‐923. 70 pp. [Google Scholar]
  15. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2016b. Reporting data on pesticide residues in food and feed according to Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 (2015 data collection): EFSA Journal 2016,14(5):4496. 33 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2016.4496 [DOI] [Google Scholar]
  16. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2016c. The 2014 European Union report on pesticide residues in food, EFSA Journal 2016;14(10):4611, 139 pp. doi: 10.2903/j.efsa.2016.4611 [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2016d. MCRA made scalable for large cumulative assessment groups. EFSA Supporting publication 2016:EN‐910. [Google Scholar]
  18. EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) , 2017. National summary reports on pesticide residue analysis performed in 2015. EFSA supporting publication 2017, in progress. [Google Scholar]
  19. European Commission , 2008. Review report for the active substance boscalid. Finalised in the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health at its meeting on 22 January 2008 in view of the inclusion of boscalid in Annex I of Council Directive 91/414/EEC. SANCO/3919 /2007‐rev. 5, 21 January 2008, 23 pp.
  20. European Commission , 2016a. Working document on pesticides to be considered for inclusion in the national control programmes to ensure compliance with maximum residue levels of pesticides residues in and on food of plant and animal origin. SANCO/12745/2013, 28‐29 November 2016. Rev. 7(3). 53 pp.. Working document available under: https://ec.europa.eu/food/sites/food/files/plant/docs/pesticides_mrl_guidelines_wrkdoc_12745.pdf
  21. European Commission , 2016b. Increased checks on import of food of non‐animal origin: Overview 2014; controls carried out be the EU Member States. Available under: https://ec.europa.eu/food/sites/food/files/safety/docs/oc_leg_imports_dpe_ms_border-checks-results_2014.pdf
  22. FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) , 2009. Submission and evaluation of pesticide residues data for the estimation of Maximum Residue Levels in food and feed. Pesticide Residues. 2nd Ed. FAO Plant Production and Protection Paper 197, 2009
  23. UNEP , 2001. Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, United Nation Environment Program, Stockholm Convention Secretariat. Available under: http://chm.pops.int/TheConvention/Overview/tabid/3351/

Associated Data

This section collects any data citations, data availability statements, or supplementary materials included in this article.

Supplementary Materials

PRIMo 2015 monitoring results risk assessment

Supplement MRL exceedances 2015


Articles from EFSA Journal are provided here courtesy of Wiley

RESOURCES