Managing Illegal Residues in the Marketplace Surveillance Program

The Marketplace Surveillance Program is a regulatory program designed to monitor compliance with pesticide laws and to help ensure that any detected pesticide residues are within the established tolerance levels. Samples are taken throughout the channels of trade: at seaports and other points of entry into the state, packing sites, wholesale, and retail outlets. All samples are tested with multi-residue screens capable of detecting more than 200 pesticides and breakdown products. Historically, less than two percent of samples collected have been found to carry an illegal pesticide residue. The attached three flow charts describe how these illegal residue(s) are managed in the Marketplace Surveillance Program.

We hope this information may be helpful to you and your staff in explaining this program to interested stakeholders. If you have any questions, please call Ms. Terry Schmer, Program Specialist in the Pesticide Enforcement Branch, at (916) 445-4023, or please call the Senior Pesticide Use Specialist serving your county.

Sincerely,