DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2014.v02i09.009

Pages: 604-606

It has been established that certain foods, such as fruits and vegetables, contain high levels of pesticide residue; contaminated with pesticides during pre- and post-harvest. In order to avoid health risks to consumers, residue pesticides must be kept within the WHO/FAO-recommended limits. The aim of this study was to determine residues of Sniper (DDVP), Chlorpyrifos and Dimethoate in samples of apple, cucumber, garden egg and guava. A selection of apple, cucumber, garden egg, and guava were purchased from the localmarkets of Bayelsa State, Nigeria. Extraction of the pesticides was carried out in each fruit sample using a mixture of ethyl acetate, hexane, and sodium chloride in the ratio of 3:1: 1. The extract was cleaned up on a glass column (containing activated charcoal and anhydrous sodium sulphate) and pre-concentrated in a water bath maintained at 45oC. Residue pesticides were detected in all the fruits except guava samples. Also, DDVP was not detected in apple samples. The concentrations of residue pesticides ranged from 0.05 – 0.2 mg per kg of fruit sample while the % contamination in respect of 50 g fruit sample ranged from 0.0001 – 0.0004. It was found that only contamination levels in cucumber were found to exceed the Maximum Residue Limits (MRL) of Codex Alimentarius Commission standard of 0.1 mg kg -1 in fruits and vegetable.