Monitoring of Pesticides in the Cultivation of Nopal Vegetable ( Opuntia ficus-indica (L.)) Mill, Morelos, México

Irene Iliana Ramírez-Bustos, Víctor López-Martínez, Porfirio Juarez-Lopez, Irán Alía-Tejacal, Dagoberto Guillén-Sánchez, Hugo Saldarriaga-Noreña and Ismael León-Rivera
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Irene Iliana Ramírez-Bustos: Posgrado en Ciencias Agropecuarias y Desarrollo Rural, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México
Víctor López-Martínez: Posgrado en Ciencias Agropecuarias y Desarrollo Rural, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México
Porfirio Juarez-Lopez: Posgrado en Ciencias Agropecuarias y Desarrollo Rural, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México
Irán Alía-Tejacal: Posgrado en Ciencias Agropecuarias y Desarrollo Rural, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México
Dagoberto Guillén-Sánchez: Posgrado en Ciencias Agropecuarias y Desarrollo Rural, Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México
Hugo Saldarriaga-Noreña: Centro de Investigaciones Químicas, Instituto de Ciencias Básicas y Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México
Ismael León-Rivera: Centro de Investigaciones Químicas, Instituto de Ciencias Básicas y Aplicadas, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Av. Universidad 1001, 62209 Cuernavaca, México

Agriculture, 2018, vol. 8, issue 11, 1-10

Abstract: The presence of pesticide residues in vegetable and fruit products, as a consequence of inappropriate application in some cases, constitutes a risk to the health of the exposed population. In Mexico, the official norm, NOM-003-STPS-1999, only allows the use of pesticides with the phytosanitary registry, the responsible state commission for the control of the process and use of pesticides and toxic substances, which recommends doses and permitted crops. Despite the above, it is still common to find pesticide residues in some vegetable products. In this study, the following were detected: Chlorpyriphos, Dimetomorph I, Malathion, Omethoate, Carbendazim, and Imidacloprid in Nopal. The study was carried out in two collection centers located in the state of Morelos. In total, sixty samples were taken, thirty for each collection center, for a period of 10 months. To determine the pesticide residues, the analytical methodology was used, according to the guide, SANTE/11945/2015; in a laboratory accredited by the Mexican Accreditation Entity A. C. in the norm, NMX-EC-17025-IMNC-2006. The procedure for extracting analytes was carried out using the method, QuEChERS. The highest concentration of the pesticides detected in the samples obtained from the non-Certified Supply Center were Chlorpyrifos 0.309 mg/kg (MRL 0.01), Dimetomorf I 0.029 mg/kg (MRL 0.01), Malathion 0.155 mg/kg (MRL 0.01), Omethoate 0.032 (MRL 0.01), Carbendazim 0.090 mg/kg (MRL 0.01), and Imidacloprid 0.058 mg/kg (MRL 0.01). Thirty percent of the samples analyzed showed pesticide residues; the most frequent were Carbendazim. The results for the estimated daily intake (EDI) oscillated between 6.5 × 10 −5 and 1.3 × 10 −4 mg/kg body weight for the vegetable, Nopal. In principle, it could be concluded that the consumption of Nopal with pesticide residues does not represent any toxicological risk for human health, however, the risk cannot be ruled out due to the intake of other vegetables and fruits that are cultivated in the Mexican Republic, which probably present pesticide residues, which together would raise potential risks to human health.

Keywords: pesticide residues; QuEChERS; Opuntia ficus-indica (L.) Mill; risk assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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