Efficacy of ultrasound treatment in the and removal of pesticide residues from fresh vegetables: A review

Publication date: Available online 28 January 2020Source: Trends in Food Science & TechnologyAuthor(s): S.M. Roknul Azam, Haile Ma, Baoguo Xu, Shoma Devi, Md Abu Bakar Siddique, Sarah L. Stanley, Bhesh Bhandari, Junsong ZhuAbstractBackgroundPesticide residues (PR) present in food are potentially toxic components to humans and can be the cause of severe health problems, depending on the means and amounts of individual exposure. Among the different routes of pesticide exposure, the most likely exposure is through the direct consumption of fresh foods.Scope and approachTo remove PR from fresh agricultural products and improve food safety for consumers, various pesticide removal methods have been studied in recent decades. Several cleaning techniques such as usage of surfactants, ozone (O3), ionic solvent, and chlorine treatment have been applied to reduce the presence of pesticides. However, none of these methods have been reported as being successful in removing PR without any physical or chemical side effects to the food itself. Therefore, there is a crucial need for investigation of more effective, sustainable, and environment-friendly pest and pesticide removal practices.Key findings and conclusionsUltrasound-assisted cleaning (UAC) is considered to be an environment-friendly and effective pesticide eliminating process which is unique in its ability to remove the contaminants compared to conventional methods. It is also a time and energy-saving method of cleaning. This revie...
Source: Trends in Food Science and Technology - Category: Food Science Source Type: research