Pesticide Residue Testing

Pesticides are any substance or mixture of substances designed to prevent, destroy or control any unwanted species of plants, animals or insect pests causing harm during or otherwise interfering with the production, processing, storage and transport of agricultural commodities.

The different types are insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, antimicrobials, miticides, rodenticides and repellents. Pesticides are used throughout food production and at packaging facilities to prevent contamination and also to protect food against pests during transportation.

The trace amounts of pesticides that remain in or on fruits, vegetables, grains and other foods are called “residues.” Pesticide residue consumption by humans over a long period of exposure has been shown to cause harmful acute and chronic health effects. Pesticide residue levels are highly-regulated, and while some residues may remain after harvesting, they naturally decline as the pesticide compound breaks down over time. Residues also decrease or are concentrated when products are washed, processed, and packaged.

At TUV India we cover more than 400 molecules of pesticide residues at our Pune and Bangalore laboratories for various commodities. TUV India uses highly efficient techniques of LCMS/MS and GCMS/MS with AOAC, EN and other internationally based methods to quantify pesticide residues. We cover both Single residue monitoring and Multi-residue monitoring with our methods and have one of the most desired limit of quantifications (LOQ) in the pesticide residue testing market.

The Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) of these pesticide residues in foods are often stipulated by regulatory bodies in many countries. Regulatory bodies such as CODEX, European Union (EU), United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), Gulf cooperative countries (GSO/GCC), Food Standards code Australia and New Zealand, Food Safety and Standards Authority India (FSSAI) and many more countries have specific MRL regulations that provide information on such pesticide residue limits for various fresh agro commodities.

At TUV India, we provide clients with testing of pesticide residues with regards to complete FSSAI (213) list, Jaivik Bharat pesticide list, APEDA list for grapes, Executive instructions (EIC) requirements and also IS water testing requirements.

TUV India can help exporters with their pesticide residue testing requirements in order to comply with the guidelines of exporting countries such as EU countries, CODEX countries, USA, Australia and New Zealand, Japan, GCC countries, Indonesia, and many more.