Toxic Pesticide Taints Moroccan Olives, Sparking EU Health Alert

Green olives imported from Morocco are in the sights of France. According to the notice published at the beginning of this week by the European Union’s Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF), under number 2025.7213, the pesticide "chlorpyrifos-ethyl" was detected in these olives during a routine check carried out by the producing company itself.

After laboratory analysis, the authorities report the presence of the pesticide at a concentration of 0.030 mg/kg, which is three times higher than the maximum limit allowed in Europe, set at 0.01 mg/kg. According to the RASFF, this alert is serious, as the consumption of chlorpyrifos, a dangerous insecticide whose use has been banned by the European Union since 2020, can affect human health, particularly the nervous system.

Following this discovery, the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food has intervened urgently. It has ordered the immediate withdrawal of the contaminated batches from all stores and sales outlets in the local market, in addition to launching a product recall campaign for consumers who have already purchased it. The batch in question had not been distributed outside of France, which limits the spread of the risk to other European countries, the European notice reassures.

So far, no cases of illness related to the consumption of these olives have been reported. However, the authorities advise consumers who have purchased the product not to consume it at all and to return it to the stores where they had acquired it.