EU Report for 2021 Shows Pesticide Residues in Foods are Mostly Low, Stable
The majority of food on the EU market contain pesticide residues below legally permitted thresholds, known as maximum residue levels (MRLs), according to the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA’s) 2021 report on pesticides in foods. However, because of grapefruits, the rate at which pesticide residues exceeded the MRLs for sampled products rose slightly in recent years.
For the report, a total of 87,863 food samples were collected in the EU in 2021. Analysis of the results shows that 96.1 percent of samples fell within legally permitted levels. Additionally, a subset of 13,845 samples were analyzed as part of the EU-coordinated control program (EU MACP), and 97.9 percent of such samples were below MRLs. Alongside harmonized and comparable data collected under EU MACP, EFSA’s annual report also includes data collected as part of national control activities carried out by individual EU Member States, Norway, and Iceland.