ABSTRACT
The problem of pesticide residues in drinking water is often treated as separate from the general issue of food contamination, and has attracted some distinctive actors and rules. The worst food poisoning epidemic of all time occurred in Iraq in 1971-72, due to the consumption of bread made from wheat grain treated with an organo-mercury fungicide. Another area of contention concerns the possibility of a so-called cocktail effect of different pesticide residues in food. The Residue Working Group made an effort to provide personnel for any FAO trials concerning residues in food, and for all Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR) meetings. The European Union (EU) has a number of directives which adopt Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) for a variety of foodstuffs and pesticides. The Codex Alimentarius Commission, which serves as a multi-regime for the whole wider issue of food contamination, does technically include drinking water within the definition of its subject matter.
