Naju City Conducts Residual Pesticide Tests on Agricultural and Livestock Products... Targeting 1,000 Cases This Year

Naju City in Jeollanam-do announced on the 3rd that it plans to conduct more than 1,000 safety inspections this year on residual pesticides and other safety factors for agricultural and livestock products shipped to local food direct stores, partner stores, and public meals.

Naju Local Food Direct Store, Residual Pesticide Inspection Sample Collection Scene
[Photo by Naju City]

The inspections are conducted by collecting samples of agricultural products at the production stage through prior requests from farms and at the distribution and sales stages in direct stores, and are carried out at the Naju Agricultural Product Safety Analysis Laboratory or designated private analysis institutions.

The inspections check the appropriate allowable levels of residual pesticides consisting of a total of 463 components, including insecticides and herbicides.

To ensure the reliability of the safety inspection results, the city requests inspections by having consumers or responsible personnel randomly extract samples of agricultural products at the distribution stage shipped from direct stores.

Agricultural products that fail the inspection results are reported to related agencies and are subject to shipment delays, disposal measures, and disciplinary actions according to direct store shipment regulations.

Along with residual pesticide inspections, the ‘Naju Local Food Certification System,’ first introduced in August last year, further enhances food safety.

The Naju Local Food Certification System applies certain safety standards to agricultural and livestock products from production areas, as well as processed foods, and displays certification marks on shipped products.

To obtain certification, applicants must complete mandatory certification education before applying, and agricultural products must pass residual pesticide inspections covering 463 items.

For livestock products, antibiotic-free, organic livestock, and HACCP certification are mandatory.

Processed foods must use agricultural products certified by the Naju Local Food Certification and have a raw material content ratio of 50% or more to be eligible for certification.

If safety standards such as residual pesticide detection are violated, the certification is suspended for 3 months on the first offense, 6 months on the second, and canceled on the third.

Therefore, certified farms thoroughly conduct pre-distribution inspections and ship fresher and safer agricultural products.

A city official said, “Through supplying locally certified safe food, farmers gain trust and income, and consumers can purchase fresh food with peace of mind, strengthening the value of food coexistence. We will do our best to enhance the ethical awareness of shipping farms and increase consumer trust through continuous safety inspections.”

Naju = Kim Yukbong, Honam Reporting Headquarters, Asia Economy baekok@asiae.co.kr

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.