Dear CSCA Members,
Pursuant to previous emails regarding this matter, CSCA members are reminded that South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) implemented a Positive List System (PLS) for Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) on January 1, 2019 and CODEX MRLs for pesticide residues are no longer applied to commodities imported by South Korea.
As of January 1, 2019, a default limit of 0.01 parts per million (ppm) will be applied to commodity/pesticide combinations that do not have a MRL published on South Korea’s PLS. All commodities imported by South Korea are now subject to the PLS and consignments may be rejected if pesticide levels are detected above 0.01 ppm for commodities without an established MRL for specific pesticides.
It is important for CSCA members to be aware of South Korea’s PLS enforcement to prevent any trade disruptions. MFDS recently released an information packet (attached) containing information regarding the PLS. All CSCA members exporting to South Korea are encouraged to consult the following link to review the MRLs currently published for various commodity/pesticide combinations on South Korea’s PLS: https://www.foodsafetykorea.go.kr/foodcode/02_01_02.jsp. In addition, CSCA members exporting to South Korea should verify the MRLs of concerns with their respective South Korean importers.
Pulse Canada continues to work with the Government of Canada and registrants of pesticides used in Canada to identify specific pesticide/commodity combinations that may be at risk of non-compliance with the PLS, and in certain cases, to establish a MRL in South Korea via the MFDS submission process.
If CSCA members have any questions, including the pesticide/commodity combinations that may be at risk of non-compliance with South Korea’s PLS, please contact Greg Bartley at gbartley@pulsecanada.com.