Pesticide residues in vegetables - validation of the gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry multiresidual method and a survey of vegetables on Slovenian market

An analytical method for determining pesticide residues in vegetables was introduced and validated. The extraction was conducted using acetone, dichlorometane and petroleum ether, and the determination was conducted using gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. The method was applied in practice. A total of 35 active substances (pesticides) were sought in 50 vegetable samples gathered from Slovenian stores. In samples insecticide flonicamid and fungicides boscalid, fludioxonil, fluopyram, pyraclostrobin and tebuconazole were found. The active substances sought were not determined in 86.0 % of the samples analysed. The risk assessment revealed that the analysed vegetable samples do not represent an unacceptable risk for consumers. The results were compared with those from the literature and the outcome was that vegetables from Slovenia contained boscalid, fluopyram, pyraclostrobin and tebuconazole, which were found also in China, Italy and Turkey.