“PFAS Pesticides” in fruit and vegetables

Two recently published reports that have received considerable attention both focus on the occurrence of pesticides, in particular so‑called “PFAS pesticides,” in various food products. In Råd & Rön’s review of 17–20 varieties of small tomatoes, the majority of imported products were shown to contain pesticide residues, including several classified as “PFAS pesticides.” The PFAS‑classified active substances detected included, among others, fludioxonil, fluopyram, penthiopyrad, sulfoxaflor and trifloxystrobin, several of which are used in plant protection products with documented TFA formation (trifluoroacetic acid). The concentrations were below current EU maximum residue limits (MRL), but several products contained as many as ten to eleven different pesticides simultaneously, which also included non‑PFAS fungicides and insecticides. Moroccan tomatoes contained particularly many residues, while Swedish and organic varieties showed no measurable residues at all. Individual cases of residues of substances not approved in the EU were noted, for example penthiopyrad in one Spanish product.

The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation’s analysis of 86 food products—apples, grapes, kale, tomatoes, peppers, rapeseed oil and wheat flour—showed that 74% of conventionally grown items contained pesticide residues, of which ten different active substances are classified as “PFAS pesticides.” These include, among others, fluopyram, fludioxonil, trifloxystrobin, mefentrifluconazole and sulfoxaflor, all of which can or are suspected to form TFA during environmental degradation. The number of other identified pesticides was also high—32 substances in total—including fungicides such as boscalid and pyraclostrobin and insecticides such as acetamiprid and cyantraniliprole. All concentrations were below EU maximum residue limits, but several products contained up to seven active substances simultaneously. Tomatoes showed a lower frequency of residues than, for example, apples and grapes, but PFAS pesticides still appeared in part of the tomato products. The naturally occurring insecticide spinosad was found in two organic products; however, the substance is approved for use in organic farming. The data from the investigation confirm that PFAS‑based plant protection products are well established and are found in finished food products. The pesticide analyses in the study were carried out by Eurofins.

The reports describe how degradation products of “PFAS pesticides,” primarily TFA, risk accumulating in the environment, surface water and groundwater, as well as in cultivated crops. Denmark has already banned several “PFAS pesticides” following documentation of TFA formation, and re‑evaluations are ongoing in several Nordic and Baltic countries. In Sweden, 18 PFAS‑classified active substances were approved in 2025, and sales volumes have increased over the years.

Eurofins can offer comprehensive laboratory analyses of pesticides, including PFAS‑classified pesticides and other pesticides. We also offer analyses of “regular” PFAS (e.g. PFOS, PFOA), ultrashort‑chain PFAS, and specifically trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), with high sensitivity and quality‑assured methods.

For questions regarding pesticides and/or PFAS, please contact us

Links

Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (in Swedish)
Råd & Rön (login required; in Swedish)
TV4 report (in Swedish)