The pesticide residue limit standard is formulated based on the toxicology of the pesticide, the residue of the pesticide in the agricultural product, and the dietary structure of the consumer. Countries around the world have established very strict pesticide residue limit standards.

Recently, in response to the question of why the pesticide residue limit standards vary from country to country, the China Food Refugee Alliance interviewed the Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Expert Group of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. Experts believe that technically, due to different countries, the use of pesticides is different, and the environmental conditions such as climate and soil are very different. The residual amount of the same pesticide in the same agricultural product is different. In addition, the food structure of each country is also very different. Therefore, the standards for pesticide residue limits set by countries are different.

In addition, although the main purpose of countries to establish limited standards is to ensure food safety, in order to protect their own interests, countries increasingly use pesticide residues as technical barriers to international trade in agricultural products, and will formulate their own pesticide residue limits according to their needs. standard. Experts believe that the following two aspects are mainly reflected:

First, stricter residue limits are often set for pesticides that are not produced or used in the country. For example, the bactericide captan and the highly toxic pesticide methyl parathion in Japan, the residue limit in rice is specified as 5 mg / kg and 1 mg / kg, respectively, without the production of these two pesticides in the EU Both are specified as 0.02 mg/kg, which differ by 250 times and 50 times, respectively.

Second, for agricultural products that are not or mainly dependent on imports, the standards for pesticide residue limits are stricter, while the standards for domestically produced, especially exported, agricultural products are more relaxed. For example, the European Union’s residue limit for the new insecticide chlorantraniliprole is 0.01 mg/kg and 0.02 mg/kg on rice and tea, respectively, and 1 mg/kg on grapes. For Europe, grain and tea are the main imported agricultural products, and the standards are strict. Grapes are the dominant crops. Although they can be eaten fresh, the standard requirements are rather loose.

According to experts, at present, China’s pesticide residue limit standards are lower than those in developed countries, and some are higher than developed countries. For example, in China, the residue limit of malathion in citrus, apple and kidney bean is 2 mg/kg, 1 mg/kg in brown rice and 0.5 mg/kg in radish, all of which are stricter than 8 mg/kg in the United States. Limited standard.

Experts said that in order to coordinate and harmonize standards, the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is responsible for the development of international standards for pesticide residue limits. At present, as the chairman of the CAC Pesticide Residue Standards Committee, the pesticide residue limit standard is as close as possible to the CAC Codex standard.