Residues in Beeswax: A Health Risk for the Consumer of Honey and Beeswax?

Abstract

A scenario analysis in regard to the risk of chronic exposure of consumers to residues through the consumption of contaminated honey and beeswax was conducted. Twenty-two plant protection products and veterinary substances of which residues have already been detected in beeswax in Europe were selected. The potential chronic exposure was assessed by applying a worst-case scenario based on the addition of a "maximum" daily intake through the consumption of honey and beeswax to the theoretical maximum daily intake through other foodstuffs. For each residue, the total exposure was finally compared to the acceptable daily intake. It is concluded that the food consumption of honey and beeswax contaminated with these residues considered separately does not compromise the consumer's health, provided proposed action limits are met. In regard to residues of flumethrin in honey and in beeswax, "zero tolerance" should be applied.

Environmental contaminants of honeybee products in Uganda detected using LC-MS/MS and GC-ECD

“…Honey-based products such as cut and chunk comb (i.e. sections of honey comb are incorporated into jars of honey) also have the potential to increase primary human exposure routes to harmful compounds [46]. These challenges are particularly acute in respect to beeswax production as they increase human exposure through secondary routes such as consumption of food additives, coating agents in pastry preparation, capsules and tablets [47].…”

tau‐Fluvalinate and other pesticide residues in honey bees before overwintering

“…However, varroacides can be applied at high doses, and toxic effects against bees, including effects on their behavior, have been recorded. Another important issue with varroacides is the potential unwanted contamination of colony products such as wax, honey, royal jelly, and propolis . However, investigation of the tau ‐fluvalinate concentration is more common in bee products than in bees …”

“…Another important issue with varroacides is the potential unwanted contamination of colony products such as wax, honey, royal jelly, and propolis. [14][15][16][17][18][19] However, investigation of the tau-fluvalinate concentration is more common in bee products than in bees. 12 tau-Fluvalinate is one of the most important active compounds used to control Varroa; however, extensive and repeated use of tau-fluvalinate contributes to the selection of resistant mite populations and hampers the efficacy of the varroacide.…”

Distribution of coumaphos in beeswax after treatment of honeybee colonies with CheckMite® against the parasitical mite Varroa destructor

“…As a lipophilic substance, coumaphos accumulates in various bee products, particularly in beeswax. As a result, residues from coumaphos-containing drugs have been found in the beeswax of European origin, as reported for Belgium (Ravoet et al 2015), France (Chauzat et al 2011), Germany (Wallner 1999), Switzerland (Bogdanov 2006), Italy (Boi et al 2016;Porrini et al 2016;Perugini et al 2018) and Spain (Orantes-Bermejo et al 2010;Calatayud-Vernich et al 2017;Lozano et al 2019), and also reviewed recently in Wilmart et al (2016). Substantial coumaphos levels have also been found in the beeswax of apiaries outside of Europe, such as for example in North America (Mullin et al 2010;Wu et al 2011;Ostiguy et al 2019;Fulton et al 2019) or Uruguay (Harriet et al 2017).…”