The Environment Ministry is inspecting pesticide residues in Makkah markets to ensure food safety

As part of its ongoing efforts to enhance food security and ensure public health, the Makkah Region branch of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, represented by the Plant Resources Department, has intensified its rigorous field monitoring activities. These efforts include conducting intensive daily sampling campaigns targeting various agricultural products to ensure they are free of harmful pesticide residues and are safe for consumers.

Field monitoring and thorough inspection of markets

The inspection tours included the random and systematic sampling of vegetables, fruits, field crops, and dates for thorough analysis to ensure their safety and suitability for direct human consumption. Specialists focused their efforts primarily on the central fruit and vegetable market in Jeddah, the largest marketing outlet in the region, to guarantee product quality control at the source before reaching consumers.

Strategic context: Quality within Vision 2030

These measures are not isolated from the Kingdom's overall direction, but rather fall within the objectives of Vision 2030 and the Quality of Life Program, which places great emphasis on human health and environmental safety. Historically, the agricultural sector in the Kingdom has witnessed a qualitative shift from focusing on production quantity to focusing on product quality and safety, with food safety standards becoming a fundamental pillar of the national agricultural strategy. For years, the Ministry has been working to reduce the use of chemical pesticides and promote organic and clean farming to mitigate the health risks associated with chemical residues.

Inspection mechanism and international standards

The monitoring process has been extended to include receiving and examining samples from all branch offices across the various governorates, ensuring comprehensive and accurate coverage of all agricultural marketing outlets in the region. The collected samples are immediately sent to the branch's pesticide residue analysis laboratory for the necessary testing. The Ministry's testing procedures adhere to rigorous standards that comply with the specifications of the Saudi Food and Drug Authority, as well as with European Union standards, thus guaranteeing the application of the highest international quality standards.

Economic and health importance

This oversight movement is of paramount importance and has a direct impact on several levels:

• On the health front: Accurate testing contributes to the prevention of chronic and serious diseases that may result from the accumulation of pesticide residues in the human body, thus raising the level of public health for citizens and residents.
• On the economic front: Adherence to international standards enhances consumer confidence in local products, which supports Saudi farmers, increases the competitiveness of national products in local markets, and opens up broader horizons for export to regional and international markets that require strict safety standards.

Through these strict measures, the ministry seeks to enhance consumer confidence in local and imported agricultural products traded in the markets of the Makkah region, and to ensure that their tables are free from any contaminants, stressing its continuation of these tours to ensure a safe and sustainable food environment.