Pesticide residues in domestic agricultural products monitored in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, FY 1995-2009

During a 15-year monitoring survey (April 1995–March 2010) of pesticide residues in agricultural products, 1542 domestic samples (cereals, vegetables, fruits, etc.) collected in Hyogo prefecture, Japan, were analyzed. The number of pesticides tested increased annually from 110 to 615, and 2198 pesticides, including trace levels, were detected in 844 samples. Annual detection rates of positive samples ranged from 36 to 77% during 15 years, and the average rate was 65% in the past 5 years. With the increase in pesticides tested, total detections in FY 2005–2009 markedly increased, trace level detections composed more than half of all detections, and the numbers of samples containing 4 or more residues increased two-fold. Procymidone and iprodione were frequently found in vegetables, and kresoxim-methyl, acetamiprid, iprodione and captan in fruits. In addition, the detection of carbendazim, dinotefuran and imidacloprid increased in the past 5 years. Violations of MRLs or the uniform limit (0.01 μg/g) were observed in 9 samples (0.6%), among which pesticides unregistered for application were detected in 8 samples. The residue levels of unregistered pesticides should be assessed, as the uniform limit was applied for their regulation in many cases.