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IS IT SAFE TO EAT
STRAWBERRIES ?
Deepak Dhakal
President of Nastox Nepal
Teaching Faculty, Department of
Chemistry, Patan M. Campus, T.U.
Health Benefits
It can be taken as a Heart healthy diet, and the best snacks for
the pregnant women due to presence of high amount of Iron &
Folic acid.
Unique combination of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory
nutrients.
Health benefits in three major areas:
i. Cardiovascular support and prevention of cardiovascular
diseases
ii. Improved regulation of blood sugar, with decreased risk of
type 2 diabetes
iii. Prevention of certain cancer types including breast, cervical,
colon, and esophageal cancer.
University of Illinois, USA
This versatile red fruit can be enjoyed
alone or as part of meals, salads or
desserts.
94% of United States’ households consume
strawberries,
averaging an intake of 3.4 pounds of
strawberries per person per year.
Farmer’s Field Activities
24-Jun-14
The USDA, Environmental Working Group's
"Dirty Dozen" list of foods most likely to have
high pesticide residues (2011)
1. Celery - 64 different pesticides
2. Peaches - 62 different pesticides
3. Strawberries - 59 different pesticides
4. Apples - 42 different pesticides
5. Blueberries - 52 different pesticides
6. Nectarines - 33 different pesticides
7. Bell peppers - 49 different pesticides
8. Spinach - 48 different pesticides
9. Kale high amounts of pesticide residue
10. Cherries - 42 different pesticides
11. Potatoes -37 different pesticides
12. Grapes - 34 different pesticides
Pesticides Pollution
Human Health Effects
Known as Probable Carcinogens
Suspected Hormone Disruptors
Neurotoxins
Developmental or Reproductive Toxins
Environmental Effects
Honeybee Toxins
What will happen in Misuse & Overuse of
Pesticides?
Years of pesticides and farming the same soil, led
to a drastic lowering of nutritional value across
the food chain.
And Regular feeding of pesticides ultimately
resulting - Cancer, infertility and if pregnant -
birth defects like Baby with low IQ due to over
expose on pesticide while pregnant and many
more like failure of Kidney, lever and other
vital organs
Be aware of pesticides!
Bouchards et al, American Academy of Pediatrics, 2010
(DOI: 10.1542/peds.2009-3058). Even tiny, allowable
amounts of a common pesticide class can have dramatic
effects on brain chemistry. Organophosphate
insecticides (OP’s) are among the most widely used
pesticides in the U.S. & have long been known to be
particularly toxic for children. Finding: Kids with
above-average pesticide exposures are likely to have
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Consumers Rights
It is the consumers rights to know the
quality of Strawberries that we consume.
So, it is the belated realization to know
the exact situation of pesticides residue
present on the Strawberries available in
our market.
Common Issue
Consumers right to know about quality of Strawberries which will
be suitable to serve
- As the best snack for pregnant women
- As an ideal fruit for heart-healthy diet
- To reduce the risk of cancer
Or
- As the worst snack for pregnant women
- As a fruit for heart-filthy diet
- To enhance the risk of cancer
Turmoil Situation
From the previous pictures, the quality of
Nepalese farmers and new trend of their farming
culture indicates that the Strawberries will be
not so healthy as we thought …
So, we can say that we are completely blind
about the quality of this foodstuff and now we
are in chaos that are they really edible or not?
Research sites
Commercially grown strawberries come from the genus-
species Fragaria ananassa. Started cultivating Nyoho
strawberries, a Japanese variety, in this area since 1989 and
contributed by Jaiti Nepal, Kakani based Japanese INGO.
Okharpauwa (2,3, 6) and Kakani (2,3) VDCs of Nuwakot district
are famous for Strawberry farming (1750m – 1850m from the
see level). Approx. 20 km west from Ktm. Owing to its
sweetness and high yield, its being popular as a high-value
cash crop among the locals in this area.
Currently more than 700 households are involved in
commercial farming, each producing approx. 1000 kgs of
Strawberries per season.
Milestone Activity with Time-frame
(Sep 2012 Aug 2013)
Activities Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Remarks
Review of Previous works
Survey
Experimental design & set-up
Sample Collection
Laboratory Analysis
Mapping of locations
Analysis of data
Report preparation
What do we look for?
Organochlorines
Aldrin, Chlordane, DDT, Dieldrin, HCB, Heptachlor, Lindane, Endosulfan
Organophosphates Chlorpyrifos, Demeton-S-Methyl, Diazinon, Dimethoate, Fenamiphos, Fenthion, Maldison, Methamidophos, Methidathion,
Mevinphos, Parathion Methyl, Phorate, Parathion
Pyrethroids
Cypermethrin, Deltamethrin, Fenvalerate, Permethrin
Carbamates Benomyl, Carbaryl, Carbendazim, Carbofuran, Methiocarb, Methomyl
Other Pirimicarb (fungicide), Chlorothalonil, Dicofol, Procymidone, Tetradifon
Research Method and Experimental
Design The sampling out was taken two times –
January and March 2013
Representative samples collected from
Farmer’s Field (8 points), Collection Center (2 points)
and Markets (10 points).
Extraction was carried out in ethyl acetate, screening of
contaminants, identification, confirmation and
quantification by GC-MS/MS and LC-MS/MS.
Results and Discussion
Pesticide Tolerance
(ppm) EU
No. Sample
with no residue
Proportion
of Sample
with no residue
Proportion of
Sample with
residue > tolerance
Maximum ppm
Mean ppm
Std. Dev. Mean
Std. Error Mean
Chlorothalonil 0 1 16.66% 83.33% 0.015 0.008 0.0057 .0023190
Dicofol 0.02 1 16.66% 33.33% 0.026 0.01 0.0096 .0039193
α-Endosulfan 0.05 1 16.66% 0.00% 0.012 0.007 0.0046 .0018871
β-Endosulfan 0.05 1 16.66% 0.00% 0.009 0.005 0.0035 .0014142
Fenpropathrin 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.831 0.273 0.279 .113915
Parathion Methyl
0 1 16.66% 83.33% 0.024 0.014 0.0097 .0039644
S No Pesticide CAS No Action/Use Classification Waiting days
WHO (Toxicity)
1 Chlorothalonil 1897-45-6 Fungicide Organochlorine 14 NH
2 Dicofol 115-32-2 Acaricide Organochlorine 14 III
3 α-Endosulfan 95-99-98 Insecticide/
acaricide Organochlorine 14-21 II
4 β-Endosulfan 33213-65-9 Insecticide/
acaricide Organochlorine 14-21 II
5 Fenpropathrin 39515-41-8 Insecticide/
acaricide Pyrethroid 14 II
6 Parathion
Methyl
(Metacid)
298-00-0 Insecticide/
acaricide Organophosphate POP Ia
(Banned)
Organochlorine 66.66%
Organophosphate & Pyrethroid 16.66%
WHO Classification of Pesticides Ia = Extremely Hazardous 16.66%, II = Moderately Hazardous 50%,
III = Slightly Hazardous 16.66 %, NH = Non Hazardous 16.66 %
Fenpropathrin was observed as a noticeable
level during March 2013 in the Okharpauwa
sites.
Pendimethalin (herbicide) and Pyraclostrobin
(growth regulator/ fungicide) were also
detected by LC-MS/MS in all samples but found
less than detection limit (1ng/g).
Outcomes
1. The research successfully disclosed the ground reality of the pesticide residue on
Strawberries of Nuwakot district Nepal.
2. It creates public awareness on the existence calamity of the pesticides residue on
Strawberries
3. The data, of course, may support as a data bank of pesticide used in Country
4. It may draw attention to the
- food producers/consumer
- quality control agencies
- certification bodies
- international community
- trading partners
ultimately it will be a milestone
- to boost up the economy of district/nation
- to improve human health in nation
- to keep healthy & sustainable environment globally
Outcomes …
5. Enhance the contribution in research and development on
pesticides residue analysis in Nepal.
Particularly,
it initiates the young researchers/students for contribution in
the academic research field in Universities
it may further initiate pesticides residue analysis on different
foodstuffs available in our country and
ultimately, it may play the great role for leading to healthy and
sustainable farming culture in Nepal.
Conclusion and Recommendation
Endosulfan is a widely used insecticide, but it can be
taken as an endocrine disruptor, causing reproductive
and developmental damage in both animals and humans.
So, it has banned in most of the countries like USA &
European countries; and EPA recommend to ban
Endosulfan in agro-products as soon as possible from
around the world.
Similarly, Parathion Methyl was already banned for
normal use in agriculture produces in all around the
world but it was detected in the Strawberries in the
research sites so it is hard to recommend as an edible
fruit.
Finally …
Thus, for the sustainable improvement of
human health and environment, the
Government of Nepal and other concerned
authorities should be rethink on this issue &
take appropriate action as soon as possible
for the healthy farming culture in the
research sites.
Acknowledgements
University Grants Commission, Bhaktapur, Nepal for providing
the Faculty Research Grants 2012.
Dr. Kaushik Banerjee, Senior Scientist National Research
Centre for Grapes, Government of India, Maharashtra State,
India for residues analysis and the National Society of
Toxicology - Nepal, Lalitpur for the technical supports.
Finally special thanks goes to the Strawberries growers,
distributers and retailers who made this research study
possible by voluntarily providing the detailed information on
their individual, cultural and handling practices.
Name and Address of the Partner
Organization
Research Laboratory
National Research Centre for Grapes,
Government of India, Maharashtra State, India
Dr Kaushik Banerjee, Senior Scientist (Ag. Chemistry)
Phone Number: +91-20-26914245, 25169101,
Email: [email protected], [email protected]
The National Society of Toxicology, Nepal
P O Box No.: 8973, NPC 142, Kathmandu, Nepal.
Email : [email protected] , [email protected]
www.iutox.org
Thank You!
Deepak Dhakal
Teaching Faculty, Department of Chemistry
President
National Society of Toxicology, Nepal
(Nastox Nepal) … for improving human health and environment
Sister Organization of IUTOX, USA
www.iutox.org
