Pesticide residues may arise in animal commodities (meat, milk and eggs) either from residues in animal feed or from the application of a compound directly to the animal. The levels of residues in animal commodities are unlikely to be the same from these two sources.
Registration or approval of uses of a pesticide is granted by national registration authorities when the pesticide is used for effective pest control in a manner which leaves no higher residues in food than are unavoidable and the amount of the resulting residue consumed in the food is not harmful to health.
An MRL should be high enough to include residues arising from registered or approved uses supported by valid data. For animal commodities MRLs should be high enough to include residues resulting from registered or approved veterinary uses of the compound as well as those which might occur from residues in feed items.
The Meeting recommended that Codex MRLs should accommodate the maximum residue levels estimated both by the JMPR and JECFA. Where the two estimates do not agree the Codex MRL should be based on the higher one.
The FAO Manual on the Submission and Evaluation of Pesticide Residues Data describes in Section 5.3 the principles and practices of the FAO Panel of the JMPR in establishing residue definitions. The definition of residues for enforcement (compliance with MRLs) is the definition relevant to Codex MRLs.
The Meeting recommended that the JMPR and JECFA take note of each other's definitions of residues for enforcement purposes and that these should be harmonized to provide definitions suitable for compliance with Codex MRLs. Usually the wider residue definition would cover both proposals if they were not in agreement.
