Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) 21 U.S.C. 301 et seq.
authorizes EPA to set maximum residue levels, or tolerances, for pesticides used in or on foods or animal feed. FFDCA:
- mandates strong provisions to protect infants and children
- provides the authority to set tolerances in foods and feeds (maximum pesticide residue levels)
- also provides authority to exempt a pesticide from the requirement of a tolerance
- rule-making process required to set tolerances or exemptions
- before a registration can be granted for a food use pesticide, a tolerance or tolerance exemption must be in place
- mandates primarily a health-based standard for setting the tolerance--"reasonable certainty of no harm"
- benefits may be considered only in limited extreme circumstances, very unlikely
pesticide residues in foods are monitored and the tolerances enforced by FDA (fruits and vegetables, seafood) and USDA (meat, milk, poultry, eggs, and aquacultural foods)
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