Study of Bifenazate, Indoxacarb and Emamectin Benzoate Residues on Tomato

Abstract

Experiments were conducted on the tomato to study the residues and dissipation rates of bifenazate, indoxacarb, and emamectin benzoate during the summer plantation of 2021 at different intervals (2h), 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 15 days. QuEChERS method was used for extraction and clean-up and analyzed using HPLC. Results revealed that the initial amounts of bifenazate, indoxacarb, and emamectin benzoate in leaves and fruits were3.641, 1.463; 2.592, 0.943, and 1.721, 0.215, respectively. Loss percentages in residues were higher in tomato fruits than leaves. The half-life (t½) values of bifenazate, indoxacarb, and emamectin benzoate were 1.86, 2.16; 1.83, 3.01, and 0.973, 1.16 days in tomato fruits and leaves, respectively. No residues were detected in processed tomato paste from contaminated tomato fruits with the tested pesticides indicating 100% removal. Also, washing tomato fruits resulted in a 22.92–42.45, 5.57–21.31, and 15.79–33.02% removal percentage from the residues of bifenazate, indoxacarb, and emamectin benzoate, respectively. Contaminated tomatoes could be consumed safely after 3 days for unwashed and washed fruits contaminated with the three tested pesticides according to the maximum residues limit (MRL) of the EU pesticides database - European Commission.