European average 2003
Average pesticide residues in fresh (incl. frozen) fruit, vegetables and cereals in Europe, 2003
Average number of analysed samples: 47460
Source: European Commission 2003 report "Monitoring of Pesticide Residues in Products of Plant Origin in the European Union, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein"
Share of samples with 2, 3,..., 8 and more pesticides
Total of samples with multiple residues (European average): 8931
(=20.5 % of analysed samples)
Source: European Commission 2003 report "Monitoring of Pesticide Residues in Products of Plant Origin in the European Union, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein"
Data comparability
The comparability of pesticide residue data is limited, because of several factors causing differences in the national monitoring programs. The monitoring results depends, for example, on the non-harmonized national Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs), which can differ between the countries, the range of samples taken, the analytical quality standards or the number of pesticides which were analyzed.
The table and the two graphs below provide available information on the ‘samples taken per head’ and the ‘number of pesticides tested’ as indicator of the Quality of the pesticide residue monitoring.
| Member State | Number of Samples | Number of Samples per 100,000 inhabitants | Number of Pesticides tested | Inhabitants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austria [A] | 1,404 | 17,2 | 257 | 8.140.100 |
| Belgium [B] | 1,250 | 12,0 | 131 | 10.396.400 |
| Czech Republic [CZ]* | 723 | 7,1 | 10.211.500 | |
| Denmark [DK] | 1,530 | 28,3 | 167 | 5.397.600 |
| Finland [FIN] | 1,725 | 33 | 238 | 5.219.700 |
| France [F] | 3,372 | 5,6 | 236 | 60.200.000 |
| Germany [D] | 10,586 | 12,8 | 527 | 82.531.700 |
| Great Britain [GB] | 2,452 | 4,1 | 59.699.800 | |
| Greek [GR] | 1,659 | 15,0 | 108 | 11.040.700 |
| Hungary [H]* | 2826* | 27,9 | 148 | 10.116.700 |
| Iceland [IS] | 313 | 107,7 | 290.570 | |
| Ireland [IRL] | 1,022 | 25,4 | 113 | 4.027.700 |
| Italy [I] | 7,172 | 12,4 | 57.888.245 | |
| Liechtenstein [FL] | 47 | 41 | 34.300 | |
| Luxembourg [L] | 107 | 23,7 | 451.600 | |
| Norway [N] | 2,164 | 47,3 | 206 | 4.577.500 |
| Portugal [P] | 363 | 3,4 | 129 | 10.800.000 |
| Slovakia [SK]* | 890 | 16,5 | 83 | 5.380.100 |
| Spain [E] | 3,670 | 9,3 | 191 | 39.400.000 |
| Sweden [S] | 2,131 | 23,9 | 238 | 8.900.000 |
| The Netherlands [NL] | 2,549 | 15,7 | 400 | 16.258.000 |
*Monitoring of Pesticide Residues in Products of Plant Origin in 2004, National Reports
Source: Commission of the European Communities, Commission Staff Working Document: Monitoring of Pesticide Residues in Products of Plant Origin in European Union, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein 2003
Number of Pesticides tested (2003)
Samples taken per head (2003)
Percentage of samples of vegetables, fruit and cereals with detectable pesticide residues found in official national monitoring programs (2003)
