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Maruha Nichiro Holdings‘ subsidiary Aclifus has been manufacturing frozen foods that were found to contain pesticides, causing quite a stir. Finally, a suspect has been arrested.
Now, what exactly is this Malathion?
Malathion
Also known as Malathon.
History
- Developed by American Cyanamid Company.
- Registered as a pesticide in Japan on February 7, 1953.
- Sold as Malathon emulsion in home centers, not pure Malathion.
Uses
- Insecticide
- For aphids, spider mites, and shield bugs in farmlands.
- For flies and mosquitoes at garbage disposal sites, etc.
- Medical
- Used as a treatment for lice infestations in the United States.
- Treatment for scabies (a disease caused by skin infestation with mites).
Toxicity
The permissible daily intake is 0.02mg, and excessive intake may result in the following symptoms:
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Nausea
- Excessive sweating
- Diminished vision
- Miosis (constricted pupils)
In the case of rice, the residual pesticide tolerance level is 0.1ppm. According to the Positive List System at 0.01ppm:
Residual pesticide tolerance is expressed in units of mg (1/1000g) per 1 kg of crops. This is represented in units of ppm.
So, if we consider that 1 cup of rice is made from 75g of rice and assume the pesticide tolerance value for one cup of rice is \(\frac{75g \times 0.1mg}{1000kg}\).
If we suppose that Malathion is present up to the maximum pesticide tolerance value in the rice, then \(0.02\textrm{mg} / ( 75g * 0.1\textrm{mg} / 1000\textrm{kg}) = 288,888.88…\) cups of rice need to be consumed to reach the permissible daily intake limit. I hope my calculations are correct…
Actually, the calculations for the croquettes that were the subject of the problem were available on the Saga University’s page, but now they are not.
