All foods/Common wheat grain

2024 · Germany · EFSA consolidated official controls · Calendar year

Pesticide residues found on common wheat grain

71.4% of standard-grown samples had at least one detected residue. Standard-grown means samples not identified as organic (called conventional in the source data). Detection does not, by itself, mean the food was unsafe.

Compare with other foods →
Any residue71.4%Moderate organic-buying priority

7 samples, standard-grown

No quantified residue28.6%Moderate organic-buying priority

All reported results below quantification

Multiple residues42.9%Higher organic-buying priority

Two or more residues detected

Median residue count1Moderate organic-buying priority

Highest observed count: 4

Above published limit0%Moderate organic-buying priority

Based on the reported compliance evaluation

Organic: any residue45.5%Moderate organic-buying priority

11 samples, interpret cautiously

Residue detail

What was found on common wheat grain?

The most frequently detected residues across all 18 samples. This is the complete available table for this monitoring entry.

18samples checked

Detection does not establish harm. Health risk depends on both toxicity and the amount a person is exposed to.

What do these types mean?
  • FungicideControls fungal diseases such as moulds and mildews.
  • InsecticideControls insects that damage crops or stored food.
  • HerbicideControls weeds competing with a crop.
  • Growth regulatorChanges plant growth, development or ripening.
  • Other / mixedCovers multiple substances or a role that cannot be reliably assigned from the published name.

These labels describe agricultural function, not a toxicity ranking.

ResidueTypeSamplesMedianHigher resultTypical published limit
Copper (RD)Other / mixed9 (50%)3.76 mg/kg5.21 mg/kg10 mg/kg
Health summary pending

No reviewed substance-specific summary is available, so no health effect is inferred.

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Bromide Ion (RD)Other / mixed3 (16.7%)0.93 mg/kg2.3 mg/kg50 mg/kg
Health summary pending

No reviewed substance-specific summary is available, so no health effect is inferred.

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Chlormequat-Chloride (RD)Other / mixed2 (11.1%)0.205 mg/kg0.24 mg/kg7 mg/kg
Health summary pending

No reviewed substance-specific summary is available, so no health effect is inferred.

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Deltamethrin (RD)Other / mixed1 (5.6%)0.01 mg/kg0.01 mg/kg1 mg/kg
Health summary pending

No reviewed substance-specific summary is available, so no health effect is inferred.

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Cypermethrin (RD)Other / mixed1 (5.6%)0.036 mg/kg0.036 mg/kg2 mg/kg
Health summary pending

No reviewed substance-specific summary is available, so no health effect is inferred.

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗

“Higher result” is an approximate 95th-percentile observed concentration, not a safety threshold. Amounts of different pesticides should not be added together or compared directly. Functional types describe their usual agricultural role; they are not hazard or toxicity rankings.

ADI and ARfD are intake reference values, not limits for one food sample. A personal assessment would also require consumption, body-weight and wider exposure data. Source programmes report legal Maximum Residue Level results separately.

What this tells you

A monitoring result, not a verdict.

EFSA consolidates official control results reported by national authorities; sampling strategies and food coverage differ between countries. It is not a test of every common wheat grain product sold in Germany. This entry’s latest included calendar year release is from 2024.

Published MRLs or tolerances are regulatory limits associated with pesticide use. Consumer-risk assessment is a separate process.

Limited sample coverage. Fewer than 20 samples: useful as a monitoring snapshot, but sensitive to individual results.

Compare organic and standard-grown results →

Common questions

How to read these common wheat grain results

Were pesticide residues detected on common wheat grain?

71.4% of 7 standard-grown samples in the 2024 EFSA consolidated official controls dataset had at least one quantified residue.

Does that mean common wheat grain were unsafe?

No. A laboratory detection is not, by itself, a consumer-risk finding. Regulators assess dietary risk separately.

Should I buy organic common wheat grain?

The monitored organic samples had a 45.5% detection rate, compared with 71.4% for standard-grown samples. This is a shopping-priority comparison, not a health-risk score.