Pesticide residues in total diet samples, Spain--1971-72

Average pesticide residue levels were determined for the 17 main food groups in the average Spanish diet. Using these levels and the estimated average intake of these foods, authors computed an individual's average daily consumption of pesticides from each of these food groups and her/his total diet. Foods were acquired over a 1-year period from the market of Valencia, a city that gets supplies from an agricultural area where pesticide consumption is appreciably higher than that of the rest of the country. Thus average residue levels found must be higher than the national average. Except for fruits and vegetables, the different items composing each food group were sampled in proportion to the amount consumed in the average Spanish diet. Foods forming each group were homogenized into composite samples. All foods were analyzed raw. The most frequently detected pesticides were DDT and BHC. Malathion was detected at levels less than 0.10 ppm in some samples of vegetable oils, pears, and apples. DDT and BHC levels varied from undetectable to amounts less than 1.0 ppm. Highest levels were found in lard. An individual's average daily intake of pesticides was calculated to be 78 mug DDT, a sum which includes residues of o,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDT, and p,p'-DDE, and 13.8 mug gamma-BHC. These levels are much lower than the maximum acceptable daily limits established by the United Nations Food Agricultural Organization and World Health Organization.