Effect of household processing on pesticide residues in post-harvested tomatoes: determination of the risk exposure and modeling of experimental results via RSM

Effect of decontamination and processing on insecticide residues in grape (Muscat Hamburg)

Field and laboratory experiments were conducted to study the effect of simple decontamination methods and processing on imidacloprid, dimethoate, and emamectin benzoate residues in grapes and their processed products by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. Among the decontamination methods evaluated, washing with NaCl (2%) solution was effective for reducing imidacloprid (77.55%), dimethoate (83.27%), and emamectin benzoate (77.28%) residues in mature grapes. No metabolites (omethoate and 6-chloronicotinic acid) were detected in both decontamination and processing studies. The grapes were processed into various products, including fresh juice, squash, and raisin, following the standard effective steps for each product. Washing with NaCl (2%) solution for decontamination was included as an additional step in the standard protocol and resulted in substantial removal of surface residues of the selected insecticides. The processing factor calculated was less than one for all the products.

Exposure Routes and Health Risks Associated with Pesticide Application

Pesticides play an important role in agricultural development. However, pesticide application can result in both acute and chronic human toxicities, and the adverse effects of pesticides on the environment and human health remain a serious problem. There is therefore a need to discuss the application methods for pesticides, the routes of pesticide exposure, and the health risks posed by pesticide application. The health problems related to pesticide application and exposure in developing countries are of particular concern. The purpose of this paper is to provide scientific information for policymakers in order to allow the development of proper pesticide application technics and methods to minimize pesticide exposure and the adverse health effects on both applicators and communities. Studies indicate that there are four main pesticide application methods, including hydraulic spraying, backpack spraying, basal trunk spraying, and aerial spraying. Pesticide application methods are mainly selected by considering the habits of target pests, the characteristics of target sites, and the properties of pesticides. Humans are directly exposed to pesticides in occupational, agricultural, and household activities and are indirectly exposed to pesticides via environmental media, including air, water, soil, and food. Human exposure to pesticides occurs mainly through dermal, oral, and respiratory routes. People who are directly and/or indirectly exposed to pesticides may contract acute toxicity effects and chronic diseases. Although no segment of the general population is completely protected against exposure to pesticides and their potentially serious health effects, a disproportionate burden is shouldered by people in developing countries. Both deterministic and probabilistic human health risk assessments have their advantages and disadvantages and both types of methods should be comprehensively implemented in research on exposure and human health risk assessment. Equipment for appropriate pesticide application is important for application efficiency to minimize the loss of spray solution as well as reduce pesticide residuals in the environment and adverse human health effects due to over-spraying and residues. Policymakers should implement various useful measures, such as integrated pest management (IPM) laws that prohibit the use of pesticides with high risks and the development of a national implementation plan (NIP) to reduce the adverse effects of pesticides on the environment and on human health.