Agricultural produce subject to pesticide residue testing. [Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]
Agricultural produce subject to pesticide residue testing. [Provided by Seoul Metropolitan Government]

About 2.1 percent of summer produce samples tested for pesticide residues exceeded permitted limits, the Seoul Institute of Public Health and Environment announced Saturday.

Summer requires particular vigilance, the institute said, as heat waves and heavy rain drive up pest activity and pesticide use, while consumption of raw leafy vegetables eaten as wraps also rises.

Over two months through last month, field inspection centers in Gangnam and Gangseo collected 1,112 samples covering 58 varieties of seasonal and priority summer produce from the Garak and Gangseo wholesale markets, hypermarkets and online retailers. Testing found that 23 samples — 2.06 percent of the total — across 16 items, including lettuce, perilla leaves and Swiss chard, exceeded residue limits. The violations involved 26 pesticides: 13 insecticides, nine fungicides, three herbicides and one plant growth regulator.

Seoul Metropolitan Government officials immediately seized and destroyed the non-compliant produce on site and notified relevant agencies, including local governments in the producing regions, to block further retail distribution.

The institute plans to continue monitoring summer produce through the end of this month, reinforcing a risk-tiered inspection system built on accumulated data. It will focus on items with a high non-compliance rate over the past three years or significant pest risk, and streamline testing through seasonal, differentiated inspection protocols.

An institute official said pesticide residues on produce break down naturally over time and can be largely removed by soaking in water for a period and then rinsing repeatedly under running water. Information on washing methods and pesticide residues is available on the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety's Food Safety Korea website.

The inspection was designed in response to increased pest activity and pesticide use driven by heat waves and hot, humid weather, and covered a total of 475 pesticide types.

Institute director Park Ju-seong said the agency would "secure safety through preemptive testing of leafy wrap vegetables popular with citizens in summer, as well as produce at high risk of pest outbreaks."


ken@heraldcorp.com