Abstract

Remnant or by-products of pesticides arising from the field or storage pest applications sometimes find their ways into the final food produce. They are called pesticide residues. Studies have shown the occurrence of these residues in various food produce including tea, fruits, vegetables, beverages and even baby and infants food. With about 800 pesticides permitted for use globally, residue becomes almost inevitable. For the infants, and young children, the health effects at that critical developmental phase could be severe and irreversible. This is because quantitative and qualitative differences in pesticides absorption, metabolism, detoxification and excretion relative to adults, make the children more susceptible due to much higher kg per body weight. This study assessed the pesticide residues in the common baby food and compared with international maximum residual limits. Using gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection, five infant and baby’s food tagged A, B, C, D and E were analyzed. In all, multiple residues involving various twenty five pesticides were detected in the five food products. Fifteen of the pesticides including resmethrin (0.0002 µg/g), chlorpyrifos (0.0002 µg/g), allethrin (0.0004 µg/g), piperonyl butoxil (0.0003 µg/g), cyfluthrin (0.0001 µg/g), chlorpyrifos methyl (0.0002 µg/g), diclorovos (0.0001 µg/g), fluridane (0.0002 µg/g), fludioxonil (0.0002 µg/g and 0.0001 µg/g), lindane (0.0002 µg/g), daminozide (0.0002 µg/g), methy paraoxon (0.0001 µg/g) and DDE.p.p (0.0002 µg/g and 0.0001 µg/g) were above the WHO and USEPA maximum residual limits. The potential interaction of different mixtures for those pesticides that are below international residual limits as well as the occurrence of those at concentrations above these standards called for serious concerns, giving their critical effects on nervous, endocrine and immune systems. Further studies must be encouraged to determine the status of residue in other foods and the elimination of these residues, particularly in the infants and baby’s food.

Keywords: Agriculture, Pesticide residues, and Pesticides