Organophosphates Market Basket Survey

2 Case study (Organophosphates Market Basket Survey) 

The OPMBS was sponsored by a task force, consisting of major registrants of organophosphate pesticides, and utilized three contract organizations to carry out study management, design and conduct of sample collection, and quality assurance (QA). Four analytical laboratories performed the necessary residue analyses. 

Study design was a joint effort of the task force and the three contract organizations, with input from the laboratories on analysis-specific issues. The design is described briefly below. Specific issues regarding the design and the conduct of the OPMBS are discussed in detail in the following sections. 

Each sample was analyzed for a specific set of compounds, corresponding to pesticide residues that might occur in the Suit or vegetable from use of one or more organophosphate insecticides on the growing crop. Insecticides of interest are listed in Table 1. 

This article summarizes key items discovered or developed during the OPMBS, to illustrate (a) the design of an LSMBS study protocol and (b) specific practices found useful in the conduct of such a study. 

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Organophosphate ester components of hydraulic fluids such as triphenyl phosphate, nonylphenyl diphenyl phosphate, and cumylphenyl phosphate also have been detected in fish concentrations of 0.1-0.9 pg/g of fish tissue were detected principally near manufacturing facilities, while fish caught in other areas generally had concentrations below the detection limit (0.1 pg/g) (Mayer et al. 1981). In a market basket survey, tributyl phosphate was found to be present in 2% of the foods analyzed between April 1982 and April 1984 (Gunderson 1988). Intakes of tributylphosphate were estimated to be a maximum of 38.9 ng/kg body weight/day for 6- to 11-month-old children. 

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