site.btaExcessively High Pesticide Levels Found in Tenth Shipment of Argentine Sunflower Seeds - Food Safety Agency

Laboratory analysis has found excessively high pesticide levels in a shipment of Argentine sunflower seeds, the press office of the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA) said. The findings relate to the tenth cargo ship delivering sunflower seeds to Bulgaria.

The agency said that tests on a sample taken on May 8 detected deltamethrin and malathion at concentrations four and five times above the permitted limits, respectively.

The previous nine ships delivered a total of 363,400 tons of Argentine sunflower seeds to Bulgaria. Laboratory analyses showed that most of the raw material contained pesticide residues significantly exceeding the maximum allowed levels. As a result, products made from these sunflower seeds are prohibited for use in the European Union, the BFSA added.

About two weeks ago, the importer stated that one-third of the sunflower seeds had already been processed into crude oil and exported to Egypt and India.

The BFSA added that it continues to maintain strict oversight of the movement of the raw material and the products made from it.