On December 17, 2020, Alfa Chemistry Testing Lab, a cGMP-compliant laboratory of Alfa Chemistry, announced that pesticide residue analysis is now available. With extensive experience in the analytical testing field, the lab is capable of conducting analysis of various foods that might contain pesticide or herbicide such as raw agricultural products, processed agricultural products, soil, plant and water.

As food and soil safety has become a top concern in the recent decade, strict international regulations on maximum residue limits are established. And thanks to the advances of analytical chemistry, now automated high-throughput analytical methods such as iquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) have made it easier to identify and quantify residues in food.

“The purposes of setting maximum residue limits for food commodities are to protect consumers from exposure to unhealthy pesticide or herbicide residue levels and also to facilitate the international food trade industry. For food manufacturers, it is of paramount importance to strictly control pesticide residues at each stage of producing and manufacturing. There should be a quality control or quality assurance system inside of the enterprises. Or in a more convenient way, they can seek for help from external contract testing laboratories,” says the Marketing Chief of Alfa Chemistry Testing Lab. “Our cGMP-compliant testing Lab has been serving customers worldwide for years and own both expertise and versatile analytical techniques that would ensure the validity and accuracy of analytical data.”

In general cases, pesticide residue analysis includes the following steps: sample preparation, sample size reduction, sample processing, extraction, cleanup, and chromatographic determination. In addition, emphasis has been stressed that pesticide residue analysis determines not only the parent compounds, but also their metabolites and degradation products.

The following pesticides or herbicides can be tested by Alfa Chemistry:

General Herbicide, which further includes: Alachlor, Atrazine, Benefin, Bromacil, Butachlor, Butylate, Cycloate, Eptam (EPTC), Ethalfluralin, Hexazinone, Isopropalin, Metolachlor, Metribuzin, Molinate, Norflurazon, Oxadiazon, Oxyfluorfen, Pebulate, Pendimehtalin, Prodiamine, Profluralin, Prometon, Propachlor, Propazine, Simazine, Terbacil, Trifluralin, and Vernolate.

Chlorinated Pesticide, which further includes: 4,4-DDD, 4,4-DDE, 4,4-DDT, Aldrin, Alpha-BHC, Alpha-Chlordane, Beta-BHC, Delta-BHC, Dieldrin, Endosulfan I, Endosulfan II, Endosulfan Sulphate, Endrin, Endrin Aldehyde, Endrin Ketone, Gamma-BHC, Gamma-Chlordane, Heptachlor, Heptachlor Epoxide, Methoxychlor, PBCs, and Toxaphene.

Phenoxy Herbicide, which further includes: 2,4,5–TP, 2,4,5-T, 2,4-D, 2,4-DB, Dicamba, Dichlorprop, Dinoseb, MCPA, MCPP, Picloram, and Trichlopyr.

OrganoPhosphate, which further includes: Carbophenothion, Diazinon, Chlorpyrifos, Ethion, Malathion, Methyl Parathion, Parathion, and Tetrachlorvinphos.

Pyrethroid Insecticide, which further includes: Cyfluthrin, Esfenvalerate, Resmethrin, Tetramethrin, Deltamethrin, Cyphenothrin, Permethrin, Bifenthrin, Lambda Cyhalothrin, and Cypermethrin.

To learn more about Alfa Chemistry Testing Lab’s pesticide residue analysis capabilities, please visit https://www.alfachemic.com/testinglab/services/pesticide-herbicide-resid....

Author's Bio: 

Alfa Chemistry Testing Lab is devoted to solving problems in analytical testing of various items. Owing to its advanced instruments such as chromatography (HPLC, GC, GC/MS) and atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS, GFA, FIAS), the lab is increasingly recognized by its customers to be trust-worthy, professional and reliable. Overall the task of Alfa Chemistry Testing Lab is to reduce product quality risks, protect health and safety, enhance market advantage, and transfer trust value. The lab’s scientists are constantly adapting to the changing regulations and ongoing needs.