Thiophanate methyl is a broad-spectrum benzimidazole fungicide extensively applied in pre- and post-harvest, for the control of a wide range of fruit and vegetable pathogens. In the current work, the residue behavior of thiophanate methyl after application on strawberries and an estimation of the consumer dietary exposure was performed. Supervised field trials were conducted in Egypt (Qaluobiya Governorate) as to investigate the residue dynamics and terminal residues at different PHIs of thiophanate methyl and its metabolite carbendazim in strawberries under Egyptian conditions. For the measurement of residues in fruits, a QuEChERS-based protocol coupled with LC-MS/MS was optimized and successfully validated at 0.01 mg kg-1. The half-life (t1/2) of thiophanate methyl in strawberries was estimated, and a dietary risk assessment was performed employing both FAO/WHO and EFSA approaches.
Keywords: Carbendazim; Dissipation; Exponential model; Field trials; MRL; Residues; Risk assessment; Validation.