Pesticide residues in EU Food Imports — RASFF Notifications
Pesticide residues appeared in 6,457 RASFF notifications between 2018 and 2026 — 26.7% of the 24,209 notifications that identify a hazard. The origins cited most often are Turkey, India, Egypt. The most-affected product category is Fruits and Vegetables. Volume in 2025 was down 12% on 2024.
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Key figures
- How Pesticide residues problems were found
- At the EU border 54%, company's own check 23%, official control on the market 21%, monitoring or surveillance sample 2%, consumer complaint or illness 0%, other 0%. Details available for 6,423 of 6,457.
- Reached the EU market
- 48% of the products whose record says either way; 735 were recalled from consumers.
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What makes up pesticide residues
Substances named in these notifications, each counted once per notification; one notification can name several, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
| Substance | Notifications | Share |
|---|---|---|
| chlorpyrifos | 1,542 | 23.9% |
| ethylene oxide | 1,038 | 16.1% |
| acetamiprid | 570 | 8.8% |
| chlorpyrifos-methyl | 477 | 7.4% |
| thiamethoxam | 324 | 5.0% |
| carbendazim | 256 | 4.0% |
| tricyclazole | 256 | 4.0% |
| lambda-cyhalothrin | 231 | 3.6% |
| imidacloprid | 228 | 3.5% |
| clothianidin | 194 | 3.0% |
| propiconazole | 186 | 2.9% |
| dimethoate | 184 | 2.8% |
| prochloraz | 170 | 2.6% |
| chlorfenapyr | 162 | 2.5% |
| formetanate | 141 | 2.2% |
Pesticide residues notifications by year
| Year | Notifications | of which border rejections | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 3 | 1 | — | |
| 2019 | 28 | 7 | — | |
| 2020 | 727 | 231 | — | |
| 2021 | 1,152 | 426 | +58.5% | |
| 2022 | 1,007 | 505 | -12.6% | |
| 2023 | 954 | 564 | -5.3% | |
| 2024 | 1,009 | 566 | +5.8% | |
| 2025 | 883 | 406 | -12.5% | |
| 2026 | 694 | 341 | — | YTD |
| Total | 6,457 |
Origins most cited for Pesticide residues
| # | Origin country | Notifications |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Turkey | 1,389 |
| 2 | India | 1,254 |
| 3 | Egypt | 480 |
| 4 | China | 373 |
| 5 | France | 201 |
| 6 | Pakistan | 184 |
| 7 | Spain | 173 |
| 8 | Vietnam | 172 |
| 9 | Italy | 144 |
| 10 | Kenya | 144 |
| 11 | Germany | 141 |
| 12 | Belgium | 136 |
| 13 | Thailand | 130 |
| 14 | Netherlands | 125 |
| 15 | Poland | 112 |
| 16 | Brazil | 101 |
| 17 | Ukraine | 92 |
| 18 | Peru | 88 |
| 19 | Uganda | 80 |
| 20 | Sri Lanka | 74 |
| 21 | Bangladesh | 59 |
| 22 | Ecuador | 57 |
| 23 | Morocco | 57 |
| 24 | Albania | 54 |
| 25 | Colombia | 53 |
| 26 | Madagascar | 50 |
| 27 | Greece | 40 |
| 28 | Iran | 40 |
| 29 | United Kingdom | 38 |
| 30 | Cambodia | 36 |
Product categories where Pesticide residues appears
| # | Product category | Notifications |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fruits and Vegetables | 3,677 |
| 2 | Herbs and Spices | 718 |
| 3 | Cereals and Bakery Products | 539 |
| 4 | Nuts, Nut Products and Seeds | 533 |
| 5 | Cocoa and Cocoa Preparations, Coffee and Tea | 229 |
| 6 | Other Food Product / Mixed | 167 |
| 7 | Dietetic Foods, Food Supplements and Fortified Foods | 154 |
| 8 | Feed Materials | 96 |
| 9 | Food Additives and Flavourings | 94 |
| 10 | Poultry Meat and Poultry Meat Products | 64 |
| 11 | Fats and Oils | 41 |
| 12 | Prepared Dishes and Snacks | 39 |
| 13 | Soups, Broths, Sauces and Condiments | 26 |
| 14 | Ices and Desserts | 21 |
| 15 | Fish and Fish Products | 18 |
Origins under EU increased official controls for Pesticide residues
Under Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 the EU checks these origin–product combinations at an increased, fixed frequency because of Pesticide residues findings:
| Origin | Products | Checks | Annex |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominican Republic | HS 0709, 0710 | 50% | I |
| Dominican Republic | HS 0709 | 50% | II |
| Egypt | HS 2008 | 50% | I |
| India | HS 0708, 0710, 1211 | 50% | II |
| India | HS 0909 | 50% | I |
| Madagascar | HS 0713 | 50% | I |
| Malaysia | HS 0810 | 50% | I |
| Rwanda | HS 0709, 0710 | 50% | I |
| Sri Lanka | HS 0708, 0709, 0710 | 50% | I |
| Sri Lanka | HS 1211 | 50% | II |
| Thailand | HS 0709, 0710 | 50% | I |
| Turkey | HS 2008 | 50% | II |
| Uganda | HS 0709, 0710 | 50% | I |
| Vietnam | HS 0709, 0710 | 50% | II |
| Bangladesh | HS 0708 | 30% | I |
| Burkina Faso | HS 0709 | 30% | I |
| Egypt | HS 0709, 0710, 0810 | 30% | I |
| India | HS 0709, 0710, 0804, 2106, 2530, 2836 | 30% | I |
| India | HS 0709, 0710, 0908 | 30% | II |
| Turkey | HS 0810 | 30% | I |
| Vietnam | HS 0810 | 30% | II |
| Bangladesh | HS 0805 | 20% | I |
| China | HS 0902 | 20% | I |
| Colombia | HS 0810 | 20% | I |
| Egypt | HS 0804, 0810, 0811 | 20% | I |
| India | HS 0709, 0904, 0906, 2106, 3824 | 20% | I |
| India | HS 0909, 0910, 1207, 2008, 2103 | 20% | II |
| Kenya | HS 0709, 0710 | 20% | I |
| Mexico | HS 0807 | 20% | I |
| Turkey | HS 0702, 0709, 0710, 0805 | 20% | I |
| Turkey | HS 0805 | 20% | II |
| United States | HS 1302 | 20% | II |
| Vietnam | HS 0810 | 20% | I |
| China | HS 3913 | 10% | II |
| Egypt | HS 0805 | 10% | I |
| India | HS 1006 | 10% | I |
| India | HS 1302, 2106 | 10% | II |
| Israel | HS 1211 | 10% | I |
| Kenya | HS 0708 | 10% | I |
| Pakistan | HS 1006 | 10% | I |
| Thailand | HS 0810 | 10% | I |
| Turkey | HS 0805 | 10% | II |
Recent Pesticide residues notifications
- 2026.8636 Picoxystrobin in courgettes from BelgiumFrom Belgium, Fruits and Vegetables. picoxystrobin
- 2026.8622 Dimethoate in chopped red jalapeno from IndiaFrom India, Fruits and Vegetables. dimethoate
- 2026.8589 przekroczone NDP tiametoksamu w ziarnie gryki // exceeded MRL for thiamethoxam in buckwheat grain from RussiaFrom Russia, Cereals and Bakery Products. Official control on the market, not on the market. Result 0.026±0.013 (limit 0.01 mg/kg - ppm). thiamethoxam
- 2026.8569 Exceedance of the MRL and ARfD in tomatoes from SpainFrom Spain, Fruits and Vegetables. Company's own check, reached the market, re-dispatched. Result 0.20 (limit 0.06 mg/kg - ppm). acetamiprid
- 2026.8563 Acetamiprid and Spirodiclofen in fresh peppers from TürkiyeFrom Turkey, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0.740+/-0.370 (limit 0.09 mg/kg - ppm). acetamipridspirodiclofen
- 2026.8548 Clothianidin in rice from PakistanFrom Pakistan, Cereals and Bakery Products. At the EU border, not on the market, re-dispatched or destroyed. Result 0,022+/-0,011 (limit 0,010 mg/kg - ppm). clothianidin
- 2026.8547 Thiametoxam and Tricyclazole in rice from IndiaFrom India, Cereals and Bakery Products. At the EU border, not on the market, re-dispatched or destroyed. Result 0.036±0.018 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). thiamethoxamtricyclazole
- 2026.8536 Difenoconazole in vine leaves in brine from Turkey, via the NetherlandsFrom Turkey, Other Food Product / Mixed. Official control on the market, reached the market. Result 0,94 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). Azoxystrobindifenoconazoledithiocarbamatesfluopyram+3 more
- 2026.8534 Exceedance of the MRL and ARFD for the active substance abamectin in raspberries from Morocco.From Morocco, Fruits and Vegetables. Company's own check, reached the market. Result 0,21 (limit 0,08 mg/kg - ppm). abamectin
- 2026.8530 Pesticides residues in fresh hot peppers from Republic of North MacedonicaFrom North Macedonia, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 1,8. azinphos-methyldodine
- 2026.8516 Formetanate in fresh peppers from TürkiyeFrom Turkey, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0.095 +/- 0.048 (limit 0.01 mg/kg - ppm). formetanate
- 2026.8469 Przekroczenie NDP pozostałości pestycydów w herbacie czarnej i zielonej pochodzącej z Azerbejdżanu//Exceedance of MRLs for pesticide residues in black and green tea from Azerbaijan/From Azerbaijan, Cocoa and Cocoa Preparations, Coffee and Tea. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0,022+/-0,011 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). chlorpyrifosdinotefuranlambda-cyhalothrinlufenuron+1 more
- 2026.8432 Flonicamid in red peppers from AlbaniaFrom Albania, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0,8. flonicamid
- 2026.8431 Pesticide residues in Longan from VietnamFrom Vietnam, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border. Result 0,024 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). Imidacloprideacetamipridlambda-cyhalothrinspirodiclofen
- 2026.8425 Exceeding MRL in turmeric powderFrom Belgium, Herbs and Spices. Company's own check, re-dispatched. Result 0,10 (limit 0,01 mg/kg - ppm). chlorpyrifos-methyl
- 2026.8422 Multiple Pesticide residues in Kabsa Masala imported from IndiaFrom India, Herbs and Spices. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0.075 ± 0.015 (limit 0.01 mg/kg - ppm). acetamipridcarbendazimchlorprophamchlorpyrifos+8 more
- 2026.8411 Formetanate in fresh peppers from TürkiyeFrom Turkey, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0.430+/- 0.215 (limit 0.01 mg/kg - ppm). formetanate
- 2026.8399 Acetamiprid and unauthorised substance oxamyl in okra from JordanFrom Jordan, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0,47 (limit 0,2 mg/kg - ppm). acetamipridoxamyl
- 2026.8396 Pesticide residues in Amaranthus from Togo From Togo, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, reached the market. Result 0.31 (limit 0.01 mg/kg - ppm). acetamiprid
- 2026.8390 Pesticides residues in mango from EgyptFrom Egypt, Fruits and Vegetables. At the EU border, not on the market, destroyed. Result 0.038 (limit 0.01 mg/kg - ppm). clothianidincyfluthrinfurmecycloximidacloprid+2 more
About Pesticide residues
The EU sets maximum residue levels (MRLs) for pesticides in food under Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, and residues above an MRL — or any residue of an active substance no longer authorised in the EU, such as chlorpyrifos — trigger a RASFF notification. This page groups every notification whose hazard falls in the pesticide-residues category, across all active substances.
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.