Report
An ad-hoc request was received from the European Commission to collect monitoring data on residues of didecyldimethylmmonium chloride (DDAC) and benzalkonium chloride (BAC) in food samples and to provide a statistical evaluation of the collected data according to the guidelines of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (section pesticides residues) and with a view to a possible future exposure assessment and setting of temporary Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs).
Analytical results on the Quaternary Ammonia Compounds of interest (BACs n=10-18 and DDAC) were collected for a total of 5472 food samples in the period November 2012 - April 2013. The samples were taken and analyzed by 16 Member States and Norway in the period 2012-2013 and were collated by EFSA via the Data Collection Framework (DCF) in line with the Standard Sample Description data model (SSD). Among the 5468 samples retained after the data cleaning, 43 % corresponded to vegetables, 42 % to fruits and nuts, 6 % to animal products, 2.4 % to baby food, 2.5 % to cereals and the rest to other plant products (i.e. oilseeds, pulses, hops, spices, tea, coffee and sugar plants). The majority of the animal products and baby food samples were reported as processed foods (87 % and 70 %, respectively). Some 5168 samples (95 %) did not contain quantified residues for any of the substances analysed, while the highest number of samples with at least one positive detection was found in milk and milk products (90/239 samples with quantified results). The substances with the highest number of positive detections were DDAC with 191 positive detections (38 % of the total detections) and the sum of BACs n=10-16 (BACs10-16) with 140 positive detections (28 % of the total detections). The sum of BACs n=8-18(BACs8-18) was reported in a minority of samples and without any detection. Focusing on the most detected substances, for DDAC the highest mean value at both the Lower Bound (LB) and the Upper Bound (UB) was found in the food category of animal products (3.64 mg/kg). For the sum of BACs10-16 the highest mean value at both the LB and UB was found in the food category of Fruits and nuts (14.4 mg/kg).
An ad-hoc request was received from the European Commission to collect monitoring data on residues of didecyldimethylmmonium chloride (DDAC) and benzalkonium chloride (BAC) in food samples and to provide a statistical evaluation of the collected data according to the guidelines of the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (section pesticides residues) and with a view to a possible future exposure assessment and setting of temporary Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs).
Analytical results on the Quaternary Ammonia Compounds of interest (BACs n=10-18 and DDAC) were collected for a total of 5472 food samples in the period November 2012 - April 2013. The samples were taken and analyzed by 16 Member States and Norway in the period 2012-2013 and were collated by EFSA via the Data Collection Framework (DCF) in line with the Standard Sample Description data model (SSD). Among the 5468 samples retained after the data cleaning, 43 % corresponded to vegetables, 42 % to fruits and nuts, 6 % to animal products, 2.4 % to baby food, 2.5 % to cereals and the rest to other plant products (i.e. oilseeds, pulses, hops, spices, tea, coffee and sugar plants). The majority of the animal products and baby food samples were reported as processed foods (87 % and 70 %, respectively). Some 5168 samples (95 %) did not contain quantified residues for any of the substances analysed, while the highest number of samples with at least one positive detection was found in milk and milk products (90/239 samples with quantified results). The substances with the highest number of positive detections were DDAC with 191 positive detections (38 % of the total detections) and the sum of BACs n=10-16 (BACs10-16) with 140 positive detections (28 % of the total detections). The sum of BACs n=8-18(BACs8-18) was reported in a minority of samples and without any detection. Focusing on the most detected substances, for DDAC the highest mean value at both the Lower Bound (LB) and the Upper Bound (UB) was found in the food category of animal products (3.64 mg/kg). For the sum of BACs10-16 the highest mean value at both the LB and UB was found in the food category of Fruits and nuts (14.4 mg/kg).
