BFSA Stops 56 Shipments of Over 230 Tons of Risky Goods at Border in June.
The Bulgarian Food Safety Agency blocked the import of over 230 tons of products from third countries in June. Among the stopped goods were tomatoes, peppers, matcha tea, dried figs, pistachios, and cumin due to pesticides, mycotoxins, and irregular documents.
Bulgarian border authorities blocked 56 shipments of food products during enhanced inspections in June after detecting excessive pesticide residues, mycotoxins, and documentation irregularities, the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA) announced. Most of the violations involved food products of non-animal origin.
Officials stopped shipments of tomatoes, peppers, and powdered matcha tea after laboratory tests found pesticide residue levels above the permitted limits. Inspectors also rejected consignments of dried figs contaminated with ochratoxin A and aflatoxins, pistachios containing mycotoxins, and cumin with dangerously high levels of pyrrolizidine alkaloids. Additional violations were identified in shipments of nuts and spices.
Following official veterinary and phytosanitary inspections carried out by the BFSA in June, a total of 56 consignments, weighing more than 230 tonnes, from non-EU countries were denied entry into Bulgaria. The inspections were conducted at approved border control posts under enhanced controls and emergency measures for food and feed of non-animal origin intended for import into the European Union.
During phytosanitary inspections, several shipments of fruit and vegetables were also rejected because of irregularities in their phytosanitary certificates. Among products of animal origin, imports of beef were refused following unsatisfactory identification checks, while several consignments of shelf-stable composite products were also denied entry.
The BFSA submitted a total of 47 notifications to the European Commission's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF).
Tags: Bulgaria