The German customs authorities have withdrawn Spanish oranges from the market, as they reportedly contained an excessive amount of pesticide residues, as reported on February 5 by the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed, RASFF).
The analyses carried out by the German authorities detected a concentration of methyl chlorpyrifos of 0.35 mg / kg in Spanish oranges.
Chlorpyrifos is a broad spectrum organophosphate insecticide, the use of which was banned by the European Union (EU) on December 6, 2019 due to the high risks it posed.
This compound has been in the spotlight for many years for its potential toxicity. In fact, a group of researchers from the Faculties of Pharmacy and Biochemistry and Medicine of the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), together with scientists from the National University of Comahue (Argentina), already suggested the need to review its use in 2015 by verifying that exposure to low doses of chlorpyrifos was a factor that increased the risk of breast cancer.
