Source of Contamination and Effect of Food Processing on Pesticide Residue in Food

Today, chemical contamination is a global food-safety concern, posing a risk to our health. These contaminants are mostly anthropogenically originated chemicals belongs to certain groups: persistent organic pollutants, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, perfluorinated compounds, radioactive elements, plastics, and so on. These chemicals contaminant enter our food chain by several pathways and cause adverse effects on health and the environment. Therefore, monitoring and assessment of levels of contamination and toxicity, enactment of control methods, and consideration of sociopolitical implications should be prerequisites to providing food safety. Several studies have shown that pesticide residue in food can be diminished by several processes, including hydrolysis, photolysis, and thermal treatment. However, the level of reduction depends on the chemical constituents of the pesticides, the location of the pesticides, the food type, and steps involved during food preparation. In view of the current scenario of food contamination, there is a need for extensive attention to investigating the sources and transfer of pesticides from one source to another and optimizing food-processing methods in a way that leads to substantial reduction of pesticide residue and preservation of essential nutrients in processed foods.