All foods/Apple Juice

2020 · United States · USDA Pesticide Data Program · Calendar year

Pesticide residues found on apple juice

54.4% 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 residue54.4%Moderate organic-buying priority

601 samples, standard-grown

No quantified residue45.6%Moderate organic-buying priority

All reported results below quantification

Multiple residues32.6%Moderate organic-buying priority

Two or more residues detected

Median residue count1Moderate organic-buying priority

Highest observed count: 8

Above published limit0%Moderate organic-buying priority

Compared with the recorded EPA tolerance

Organic: any residue5.7%Moderate organic-buying priority

123 samples, interpret cautiously

Annual context

How monitored results changed

Each row is a separate targeted survey. Samples can differ by retailer, origin and season, so this is context rather than a trend claim.

YearStandard-grown samplesAny residueMultiple residuesOrganic samplesOrganic any residue
2020Calendar year60154.4%32.6%1235.7%
2013Calendar year35647.5%34.3%2321.7%
2012Calendar year37249.7%34.1%244.2%
2008Calendar year34315.7%11.1%296.9%
2007Calendar year34818.4%13.2%205%
2002Calendar year72739.8%5.9%2Withheld
1998Calendar year69363.3%28%1Withheld
1997Calendar year68967.2%31.8%0Withheld
1996Calendar year17966.5%31.3%0Withheld

Residue detail

What was found on apple juice?

The most frequently detected residues across all 724 samples. This is the complete available table for this monitoring entry.

724samples 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
Tetrahydrophthalimide (THPI)Other / mixed209 (28.9%)0.04 mg/kg0.438 mg/kg25 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
PyrimethanilFungicide195 (26.9%)0.113 mg/kg0.782 mg/kg15 mg/kg
Reviewed evidence

What regulators assessed: The long-term reference value was based on liver and thyroid changes observed in animal studies at higher doses.

Reference values
Role
Fungicide
Long-term reference (ADI)
0–0.2 mg/kg body weight per day
Single-day reference (ARfD)
Not considered necessary by JMPR

Reviewed from WHO/FAO JMPR, 2007

ThiabendazoleFungicide161 (22.2%)0.022 mg/kg0.086 mg/kg5 mg/kg
Reviewed evidence

What regulators assessed: The long-term guidance value was based on body-weight suppression and nephrosis observed in an animal study at higher doses.

Reference values
Role
Fungicide and veterinary anthelmintic
Long-term reference (ADI)
0–0.1 mg/kg body weight per day
Single-day reference (ARfD)
1 mg/kg body weight (general population); 0.3 mg/kg for women of child-bearing age

Reviewed from WHO/FAO JMPR, 2019

AcetamipridInsecticide91 (12.6%)0.012 mg/kg0.025 mg/kg1 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Diphenylamine (DPA)Other / mixed50 (6.9%)0.01 mg/kg0.056 mg/kg10 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
FludioxonilFungicide50 (6.9%)0.012 mg/kg0.055 mg/kg5 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Carbendazim (MBC)Other / mixed28 (3.9%)0.013 mg/kg0.03 mg/kg2 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
MethoxyfenozideInsecticide19 (2.6%)0.002 mg/kg0.007 mg/kg2 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

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CarbarylOther / mixed17 (2.3%)0.008 mg/kg0.063 mg/kg12 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

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FluxapyroxadFungicide17 (2.3%)0.003 mg/kg0.003 mg/kg0.8 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
ChlorantraniliproleInsecticide9 (1.2%)0.012 mg/kg0.012 mg/kg1.2 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

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FlutriafolOther / mixed8 (1.1%)0.003 mg/kg0.003 mg/kg0.4 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
CyprodinilFungicide5 (0.7%)0.003 mg/kg0.003 mg/kg1.7 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
BoscalidFungicide2 (0.3%)0.008 mg/kg0.008 mg/kg3 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
PyraclostrobinFungicide2 (0.3%)0.005 mg/kg0.005 mg/kg1.5 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

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DifenoconazoleFungicide1 (0.1%)0.002 mg/kg0.002 mg/kg5 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
PhosmetOther / mixed1 (0.1%)0.008 mg/kg0.008 mg/kg10 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
Chlordane transOther / mixed1 (0.1%)0.019 mg/kg0.019 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 ↗
FluopyramFungicide1 (0.1%)0.003 mg/kg0.003 mg/kg0.8 mg/kg
Health summary pending

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

Search WHO/FAO JMPR ↗
PenthiopyradOther / mixed1 (0.1%)0.002 mg/kg0.002 mg/kg0.5 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.

USDA PDP selects rotating commodities, with emphasis on foods important to consumer diets, including foods eaten by infants and children. It is not a test of every apple juice product sold in United States. This entry’s latest included calendar year release is from 2020.

Comparable annual records are available for 2020, 2013, 2012, 2008, 2007, 2002, 1998, 1997, 1996.

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

Broader sample coverage. At least 50 samples: broader monitoring coverage, but still targeted rather than random.

Compare organic and standard-grown results →

Common questions

How to read these apple juice results

Were pesticide residues detected on apple juice?

54.4% of 601 standard-grown samples in the 2020 USDA Pesticide Data Program dataset had at least one quantified residue.

Does that mean apple juice were unsafe?

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

Should I buy organic apple juice?

The monitored organic samples had a 5.7% detection rate, compared with 54.4% for standard-grown samples. This is a shopping-priority comparison, not a health-risk score.