Assessment of Acetamiprid and Chlorpyrifos Residues on Fresh and Dried Pistachio Nuts

Introduction: In the recent years, the security and safety of foods have taken on high importance, due to the presence of pesticide residues in agricultural products. In this research, Chlorpyrifos and Acetamiprid residues have been investigated in the fresh, dried, split and non-split shelled pistachio from the variety of Ouhadi. Material and method: The QuEChERS method was used for the extracting and cleaning up of the pesticides. The concentrations of Chlorpyrifos and Acetamiprid were determined using HPLC and Ion Mobility Spectrometer (IMS), respectively. Results and discussion: The results showed that the amounts of Chlorpyrifos and Acetamiprid residues in the split samples were higher compared with those of the non-split shells, and the amounts of both pesticide residues in the dried samples were lower compared with those of the fresh ones. Chlorpyrifos and Acetamiprid residue levels in the fresh split samples were 2 and 2.5 times higher than the Maximum Residue Level (MRL), respectively. In the dried split and non-split samples, the amounts of both pesticides were less than those of MRL. As a matter of fact, the sun drying process reduces the amount of pesticide residues in pistachio nuts. Conclusion: the pesticides were normally applied to control pistachio pests and even after the pre-harvest interval, as suggested in previous research, the amounts of pesticide residues in fresh split samples were higher than MRL; therefore, there should also be some more serious hygienic controls such as pesticide residues in fresh and split pistachio nuts. In addition, it seems one should be more careful when using fresh and split pistachio nuts.