Pesticides in Honeybee Products—Determination of Pesticides in Bee Pollen, Propolis, and Royal Jelly from Polish Apiary
Agata Swiatly-Blaszkiewicz,
Agnieszka Klupczynska-Gabryszak,
Eliza Matuszewska-Mach,
Joanna Matysiak,
Everaldo Attard,
Dariusz Kowalczyk,
Aleksandra Adamkiewicz,
Bogumiła Kupcewicz,
Jan Matysiak
Affiliations
Agata Swiatly-Blaszkiewicz
Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Jurasza 2, 85-089 Bydgoszcz, Poland
Agnieszka Klupczynska-Gabryszak
Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-780 Poznan, Poland
Eliza Matuszewska-Mach
Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-780 Poznan, Poland
Joanna Matysiak
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Kalisz, 62-800 Kalisz, Poland
Everaldo Attard
Division of Rural Sciences and Food Systems, Institute of Earth Systems, University of Malta, MSD2080 Msida, Malta
Dariusz Kowalczyk
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Kalisz, 62-800 Kalisz, Poland
Aleksandra Adamkiewicz
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Kalisz, 62-800 Kalisz, Poland
Bogumiła Kupcewicz
Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Jurasza 2, 85-089 Bydgoszcz, Poland
Jan Matysiak
Department of Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-780 Poznan, Poland
The bioaccumulation of pesticides in honeybee products (HBPs) should be studied for a number of reasons. The presence of pesticides in HBPs can provide new data on the risk related to the use of pesticides and their role in bee colony losses. Moreover, the degree of contamination of HBPs can lower their quality, weaken their beneficial properties, and, in consequence, may endanger human health. The aim of this study was to quantify a broad range of pesticide residues in three different HBPs—bee pollen, propolis, and royal jelly. Samples were collected in the years 2017–2019 from the apiary in west-central Poland. Bee products were analyzed for the presence of over 550 pesticides using the QuEChERS (Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe) method. Twenty-nine of the contaminants were quantified at least in one of the samples. Nine of them exceeded the maximum residue levels for honey. It should be noted that any dose of pesticides can cause a health hazard due to toxicity, since these substances may act synergistically. This current study revealed the high need for the pesticide monitoring of HBPs and proved that there is a need to expand the European Union Pesticides Database to include more HBPs.
