CHROMATOGRAPHY, Vol. 33 (2012), No. 3, pp. -157

Japanese positive list system for pesticide residues in food has been enforced since 2006. All pesticide residues in food including processed food products are regulated by this system except unlisted compounds. For enforcement purpose, residue analysis of pesticides in food is essential. However, we frequently meet across difficulties during determination of pesticide residues in food, since such matrices contain a variety of components including interferences for chromatographic analysis. So, residue analysis of pesticides generally consists of four steps classified as follows: 1) sample preparation, 2) extraction, 3) purification, 4) determination. In this paper, the important reminder and technical skills for residue analysis of pesticides in food are explained.