Resíduos de agrotóxicos em alimentos in natura na região oeste de Santa Catarina: um estudo de 2013 a 2018, com dados do Programa Alimento Sem Risco (PASR)

Abstract

The use of pesticides can pose risks to food safety, particularly in Brazil, which has been the world's largest consumer since 2008. The main objective of this study is to investigate the presence of pesticide residues in fresh foods sold in the West region of Santa Catarina between 2013 and 2018, using data from the Food Without Risk Program (PASR). PASR is a partnership between the Integrated Agricultural Development Company of Santa Catarina (CIDASC) and the Public Prosecutor's Office of Santa Catarina (MPSC). The research follows the collection and analysis methodology described by Runtzel et al. (2017) and the descriptive-analytical documentary approach proposed by Lopes & Albuquerque (2021). The historical series covers 23 foods, collected from various points of sale and rural establishments, and grouped into three categories: No residue, With residue (below the permitted limit), and Non-compliant (with residues above the limits or unauthorized). The results demonstrate that, on average, 20% of the samples analyzed between 2013 and 2018 are non-compliant. Notably, bell peppers showed 70% of samples in this condition. Bell peppers are followed by passion fruit (67% non-compliant) and peaches (58%). Non-compliance is mostly caused by the identification of active ingredients without registration for cultivation. In the case of bell peppers, 100% of the non-compliance is due to the identification of unregistered active ingredients. 97% of the identified active ingredients correspond to insecticides (54%) and fungicides (43%). There was also a significant increase in the number of active ingredients, from 26 in 2013 to 249 in 2018. These results emphasize the importance of monitoring, oversight, and agricultural practices capable of mitigating the risks of pesticide use on the environment and human health