New legislation for ‘Fosetyl Aluminium’ in food, from now on called ‘Phosphonic Acid’.
On 8 October 2024, Commission Regulation (EU) 2024/2619 was published, introducing modifications to the maximum residue limits (MRLs) for certain compounds in food.
The most notable change revolved around the new residue definition introduced, the residue previously described as ‘Sum of fosetyl, phosphonic acid and its salts, expressed as fosetyl’, is renamed as ‘Phosphonic acid and its salts’, expressed as ‘Phosphonic acid’.
On 29 April 2025, this new redefinition of waste came into force, in which only phosphonic acid and its salts, expressed as phosphonic acid, are considered.
This modification seeks to reflect how phosphonic acid gets into food, which occurs mainly by the following routes:
- By natural occurrence in the environment.
- From agricultural phosphonates (potassium phosphonates, disodium phosphonates, etc.).
- Fertilisers, which can cause the appearance of residues in crops.
Considerations on Regulation (EU) 2024/2619
- Phosetyl aluminium will no longer be part of the residue definition.
- Regulation (EC) 396/2005 states that "The results for fosetyl are not to be taken into account and the default maximum level of 0.01 mg/kg does not apply. The MRL for its metabolite phosphonic acid shall apply".
- The toxicological assessment will be based on phosphonic acid and its salts only.
You will already find this new residue definition in the result reports we issue so that samples received from 29 April (inclusive) already comply with the legislation in force.
We hope you find this information useful and, as always, please do not hesitate to contact us for advice on the latest regulatory changes and how they may affect your performance in domestic and international markets.