Tokyo Food Safety Information Center » Tokyo Metropolitan Government food safety FAQ »What kind of monitoring and inspections are conducted concerning pesticide residue on imported foods?
What kind of monitoring and inspections are conducted concerning pesticide residue on imported foods?
What kind of monitoring and inspections are conducted concerning pesticide residue on imported foods?
- How often and what details are tested?
- What level of violations is found in test results?
- How is monitoring and guidance conducted for imported foods?
Once food is imported, a document review is first conducted by the quarantine station at the port or airport, and inspection is carried out if necessary. After customs clearance, the local government in each area performs monitoring and testing of food distributed in the market to check that pesticide residues in agricultural produce do not exceed limit values.
When food is imported, the importer has to provide an import notification to the quarantine station each time. On receiving the notification, the food sanitation inspector assigned to the quarantine station first reviews the document submitted to confirm conformity with the regulations of the Food Sanitation Act.
In addition, the sanitation inspection officer actually inspects food with a high possibility of violation due to past violations, etc. When a violation of the Food Sanitation Act is detected as a result of the document review or inspection, measures are taken that include returning the food to the exporting country or disposing of it. (See “How is imported food inspected at quarantine stations?”)
Local governments in each area perform monitoring and sampling inspections of food that is distributed in Japan. When violations of the Food Sanitation Act are discovered as a result, measures such as recalls and prohibitions on sale are taken.
Pesticide Residue Inspections of Imported Agricultural Products (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare)
In fiscal 2012, the quarantine stations and local governments performed approximately 1.61 million inspections for pesticide residues in agricultural products. Of these, 0.01% were in violation of the Food Sanitation Act.