Ethylene oxide in EU Food Imports — RASFF Notifications
Ethylene oxide appeared in 964 RASFF notifications between 2020 and 2026 — 4.0% of the 24,209 notifications that identify a hazard. The origins cited most often are India, France, Germany. The most-affected product category is Nuts, Nut Products and Seeds. Volume in 2025 was down 23% on 2024.
Key figures
- How Ethylene oxide problems were found
- Company's own check 69%, at the EU border 20%, official control on the market 10%, monitoring or surveillance sample 0%, consumer complaint or illness 0%.
- Reached the EU market
- 78% of the products whose record says either way; 200 were recalled from consumers.
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Ethylene oxide notifications by year
| Year | Notifications | of which border rejections | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 323 | 5 | — | |
| 2021 | 345 | 30 | +6.8% | |
| 2022 | 152 | 57 | -55.9% | |
| 2023 | 56 | 38 | -63.2% | |
| 2024 | 39 | 28 | -30.4% | |
| 2025 | 30 | 16 | -23.1% | |
| 2026 | 19 | 8 | — | YTD |
| Total | 964 |
Origins most cited for Ethylene oxide
| # | Origin country | Notifications |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 607 |
| 2 | France | 155 |
| 3 | Germany | 93 |
| 4 | Netherlands | 72 |
| 5 | Belgium | 57 |
| 6 | Turkey | 49 |
| 7 | Italy | 42 |
| 8 | China | 40 |
| 9 | Spain | 40 |
| 10 | Poland | 21 |
| 11 | Vietnam | 15 |
| 12 | United States | 14 |
| 13 | United Kingdom | 13 |
| 14 | Austria | 10 |
| 15 | Sweden | 10 |
| 16 | Denmark | 8 |
| 17 | Lebanon | 8 |
| 18 | Switzerland | 7 |
| 19 | South Korea | 6 |
| 20 | Thailand | 6 |
| 21 | Uganda | 6 |
| 22 | Czech Republic | 5 |
| 23 | Egypt | 5 |
| 24 | Finland | 5 |
| 25 | Portugal | 5 |
| 26 | Greece | 4 |
| 27 | Pakistan | 4 |
| 28 | Slovenia | 4 |
| 29 | Bulgaria | 3 |
| 30 | Croatia | 3 |
Product categories where Ethylene oxide appears
| # | Product category | Notifications |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuts, Nut Products and Seeds | 377 |
| 2 | Herbs and Spices | 146 |
| 3 | Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods | 121 |
| 4 | Food Additives and Flavourings | 77 |
| 5 | Other Food Product / Mixed | 77 |
| 6 | Cereals and Bakery Products | 60 |
| 7 | Fruits and Vegetables | 25 |
| 8 | Ices and Desserts | 21 |
| 9 | Prepared Dishes and Snacks | 18 |
| 10 | Soups, Broths, Sauces and Condiments | 17 |
| 11 | Cocoa and Cocoa Preparations, Coffee and Tea | 8 |
| 12 | Feed Additives | 5 |
| 13 | Fats and Oils | 3 |
| 14 | Milk and Milk Products | 3 |
| 15 | Feed Materials | 2 |
Recent Ethylene oxide notifications
- 2026.8210 Ethylene oxide in cumin seeds from India // Óxido de etileno en semillas de comino de IndiaFrom India, Nuts, Nut Products and Seeds. At the EU border, not on the market. Result 0.26 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.7580 Óxido de etileno en frambuesas procedentes de Portugal // Ethylene oxide in raspberries from Portugal. From Portugal, Fruits and Vegetables. Official control on the market, reached the market. Result 0.05 (limit 0.02 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.7570 Exceedance of the maximum residue level (MRL) for the sum of ethylene oxide and 2-chloroethanol (expressed as ethylene oxide) in sesame seeds from India.Superamento del limite massimo di residuo (LMR) per la somma di ossido di etilene e 2-cloroetanolo (espresso come ossido di etilene) in SEMI DI SESAMO origine INDIAFrom India, Nuts, Nut Products and Seeds. At the EU border, not on the market. Result 0,16 (limit 0,05 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.5772 Black pepper powder India Ethyleenoxide From India, Herbs and Spices. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0.56 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.5439 Ethylene oxide on food supplement from ChinaFrom China, Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods. Company's own check, reached the market. Result 1.3 (limit 0.06 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.5423 Przekroczenie NDP w suplementacie diety /// exceeding the MRL for ETO in food supplement from ChinaFrom China, Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 37.2 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.5355 Ethylene oxide in Boswellia serrata extracts from IndiaFrom India, Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods. At the EU border, not on the market, re-dispatched or destroyed. Result 0.40±0.2 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.5042 Ethylene Oxide in Organic Brown Rice via Ireland From Pakistan, Cereals and Bakery Products. Monitoring or surveillance sample, reached the market, destroyed. Result 0.068 +/- 0.021 (limit 0.02 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.5038 Presence of Ethylene Oxide in Worchestershire sauce from IndiaFrom India, Soups, Broths, Sauces and Condiments. At the EU border, reached the market, destroyed. Result 0.18 +/- 0.05 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.4987 Ethylene oxide in Brown Rice via ItalyFrom Italy, Cereals and Bakery Products. Monitoring or surveillance sample, reached the market. Result 0.032+/- 0.010 (limit 0.02 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.4983 Ethylene oxide in organic brown basmati rice origin Pakistan via IrelandFrom Pakistan, Cereals and Bakery Products. Monitoring or surveillance sample, reached the market. Result 0.11+/- 0.03 (limit 0.02 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.3173 Ethylene oxide in hot red chilli powderFrom India, Herbs and Spices. At the EU border, not on the market. Result 0.97 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.2271 Ethylene oxide in spices from LebanonFrom Lebanon, Herbs and Spices. Official control on the market, reached the market. Result 11.8 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.2270 Ethleneoxide in spices from LebanonFrom Lebanon, Herbs and Spices. Official control on the market, reached the market. Result 52.6 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). chlorateethionethylene oxidepropoxur+1 more
- 2026.1411 Unauthorised substance ethylene oxide (sum of 2-chloroethanol and ethylene oxide, expressed as ethylene oxide) in food supplements from SloveniaFrom Slovenia, Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods. Company's own check. Result 0,023. 2-chloroethanolethylene oxide
- 2026.0667 Ethyleenoxide in Kurkuma-extract from ChinaFrom China, Nuts, Nut Products and Seeds. Company's own check, reached the market. Result 0.18 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.0017 Ethylene oxide in various spice mixesFrom United States, Herbs and Spices. Company's own check, reached the market. Result 27 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxidemineral oil aromatic hydrocarbons (MOAH)
- 2026.0016 ethyleneoxide(sum) in Indian biryani masalaFrom India, Herbs and Spices. At the EU border, not on the market. Result 0.27 (limit 0.1 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2026.0006 Ethylene oxide in quinoaFrom Spain, Cereals and Bakery Products. Company's own check. Result 0,086 (limit 0,02 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
- 2025.9967 Ethylene oxide in organic food supplement from the USAFrom United States, Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods. At the EU border, not on the market, re-dispatched. Result 3.9 (limit 0,37 mg/kg - ppm). ethylene oxide
About Ethylene oxide
Ethylene oxide is a fumigant classified as a mutagen and carcinogen; its use on food is not authorised in the EU. Its detection in sesame seeds from India in September 2020 set off one of the largest recall waves in RASFF history, later spreading to spices and to food additives such as locust bean gum used in ice cream and other processed foods.
Which RASFF notifications does this page count?
All classifications: alert notifications, border rejection notifications and information notifications. A consignment rejected at the border and a product recalled from shelves are both evidence that the hazard reached EU food controls, so both count. The by-year table shows the border-rejection share separately.
What happens when this hazard is found in a consignment?
At the border, the consignment is refused entry and either re-dispatched, destroyed or downgraded to non-food use. On the internal market, the product is withdrawn or recalled and every member state that received it is notified through RASFF. Repeated findings against one origin can move that origin onto Regulation (EU) 2019/1793, which fixes an increased frequency of identity and physical checks at the border.
Where does this data come from?
The public RASFF Window operated by the European Commission, refetched daily. Counts are per notification, so one consignment listing several variants of the same hazard is counted once.