• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.131-139
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• 2023

In this study, we investigated pesticide residue levels in 535 domestically distributed agricultural products in South Korea using multi-residue analysis. Agricultural products from 13 regions, including Seoul, were pretreated using QuEChERS and d-SPE, and subsequently analyzed using LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS. Residual pesticides were detected in 288 (53.8%) out of the 535 samples, including 40 of apples, 40 of peppers, 33 of mandarins, 31 of peaches, and 144 other commodities. Furthermore, one sample of Korean cabbage exceeded the permitted maximum residue limit (MRL), diniconazole (0.18 mg/kg), detected at about twice the MRL. In total, 91 types of residual pesticides were detected, including fungicides (42), insecticides (48), and a nematicide. The most frequently detected pesticides were dinotefuran (91), carbendazim (75), tebuconazole (61), and pyraclostrobin (59). Our results showed that continuous monitoring of agricultural products is necessary.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.373-384
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• 2022

Fluoxastrobin a fungicide developed from Strobilurus species mushroom extracts, can be used as an effective pesticide to control fungal diseases. In this study, we optimized the extraction and purification of fluoxastrobin according to its physical and chemical properties using the QuEChERS method and developed an LC-MS/MS-based analysis method. For extraction, we used acetonitrile as the extraction solvent, along with MgSO₄ and PSA. The limit of quantitation of fluoxastrobin was 0.01 mg/kg. We used 0.01, 0.1, and 0.5 mg/kg of five representative agricultural products and treated them with fluoxastrobin. The coefficients of determination (R²) of fluoxastrobin and fluoxastrobin Z isomer were > 0.998. The average recovery rates of fluoxastrobin (n=5) and fluoxastrobin Z isomer were 75.5-100.3% and 75.0-103.9%, respectively. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) were < 5.5% and < 4.3% for fluoxastrobin and fluoxastrobin Z isomer, respectively. We also performed an interlaboratory validation at Gwangju Regional Food and Drug Administration and compared the recovery rates and RSDs obtained for fluoxastrobin and fluoxastrobin Z isomer at the external lab with our results to validate our analysis method. In the external lab, the average recovery rates and RSDs of fluoxastrobin and fluoxastrobin Z isomer at each concentration were 79.5-100.5% and 78.8-104.7% and < 18.1% and < 10.2%, respectively. In all treatment groups, the concentrations were less than those described by the 'Codex Alimentarius Commission' and the 'Standard procedure for preparing test methods for food, etc.'. Therefore, fluoxastrobin is safe for use as a pesticide.