All foods/Pulses

2023 · United Kingdom · UK Pesticide Residues in Food monitoring · Annual

Pesticide residues found on pulses

90.5% 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.

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Any residue90.5%Higher organic-buying priority

21 samples, standard-grown

No quantified residue9.5%Higher organic-buying priority

All reported results below quantification

Multiple residues71.4%Higher organic-buying priority

Two or more residues detected

Median residue count2Higher organic-buying priority

Highest observed count: 5

Above published limit9.5%Higher organic-buying priority

Parser-based MRL comparison

Organic comparisonNot availableNot enough published data

Withheld: only 3 samples

Residue detail

What was found on pulses?

The most frequently detected residues across all 24 samples. This is the complete available table for this monitoring entry.

24samples 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
glyphosateHerbicide15 (62.5%)0.2 mg/kg0.4 mg/kg10 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
imazamox (parent only)Other / mixed11 (45.8%)0.02 mg/kg0.03 mg/kg0.2 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Fosetyl-Al (sum)Fungicide8 (33.3%)0.55 mg/kg1.2 mg/kg2 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
boscalidFungicide2 (8.3%)0.085 mg/kg0.1 mg/kg3 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
carbendazim (sum)Fungicide2 (8.3%)0.018 mg/kg0.03 mg/kg0.1 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
procymidoneOther / mixed2 (8.3%)0.11 mg/kg0.2 mg/kg0.01 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
fluazifop-p (partial sum)Other / mixed1 (4.2%)0.03 mg/kg0.03 mg/kg4 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.

The UK programme is risk-based and targets foods where residues may be expected. It is not a test of every pulses product sold in United Kingdom. This entry’s latest included annual release is from 2023.

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

Moderate sample coverage. 20–49 samples: a useful monitoring snapshot, though not a population estimate.

Compare organic and standard-grown results →

Common questions

How to read these pulses results

Were pesticide residues detected on pulses?

90.5% of 21 standard-grown samples in the 2023 UK Pesticide Residues in Food monitoring dataset had at least one quantified residue.

Does that mean pulses were unsafe?

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

Should I buy organic pulses?

There were only 3 organic samples, so Residue Lens withholds the comparison.