Leaching of pesticides in tea brew

A cup of tea that cheers can also be an important route of human exposure t o pesticide residues. It is important to evaluate the percent transfer of p esticide residue from dried (made) tea to tea infusion, as tea is subjected to an infusion process prior to human consumption. To investigate the pest icide translocation, 13 pesticides commonly used on tea were studied by sub jection of fortified teas to infusion. Analytes of interest were quantified by gas-liquid chromatography with nitrogen-phosphorus and electron capture detectors. Interestingly, water solubility of pesticides did not necessari ly indicate a shift of residues toward their preferential accumulation in i nfusion. The pesticides with larger partition coefficient (K-ow) values rem ained nonextractable in infusing water. Further, boiling for longer periods (extended brewing time) resulted in higher transfer of pesticides to tea b rew.