Pesticide Residues in Processed Foods: Not a Food Safety Concern

Residue analyses results indicate that residues of triazine herbicides are not a source of concern to the processed foods industry. As with all properly applied pesticides, no food safety concerns are warranted. A close examination of the FDA Residue Monitoring program data show no residues of cyanazine, atrazine, simazine or ametryn in 1992, 1993, or 1994 representing 76,973 samples. The NFPA database (6563 values) contains one positive value (0.04 ppm) for simazine in corn and one positive value for atrazine in wheat rough (0.05 ppm). Several general pesticide issues which continue to confront the industry include inadvertent spray residues, residue concentration in soil, illegal or unintentional use of unregistered or canceled materials, consumer expectations for residue-free products, pesticide use by foreign product sources, and pesticide standards in countries to which we export. These industry concerns are discussed.