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Laboratory Triple-A rating: A new approach to evaluate performance-underperformance of laboratories participating in EU proficiency tests for multi-residue analysis of pesticides in fruits and vegetables

A. Valverde, A.R. Fernández-Alba, C. Ferrer, A. Aguilera

   

DOI: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2015.12.009

Abstract 

Since 2004, official laboratories analyzing pesticide residues in the European Union (EU) are being classified, every year, into two groups or categories (A or B) taking into account the results obtained in the EU Proficiency Test for pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables (EUPT-FV): laboratoriesdetecting at least 90% of the pesticides present in the Test Item and reporting no false positives are classified into Category A, whereas all the others are included in the Category B. In this publication, anew three-dimensional (XYZ) classification, with three categories (A, B or C) within each dimension, is proposed to evaluate performance-underperformance of laboratories participating in the EUPT-FV. According to this proposal, laboratories would be evaluated taking into account the number of detected pesticides (dimension X: scope), the number of acceptable z-scores (dimension Y: performance), and the number of false positives (dimension Z: false positives). The borderline criteria for establishing categories A, B and C in scope (X) and performance (Y) are 90% and 50% of either the total number of pesticides present in the tests item or the total number of z-scores assigned to the laboratory, but thoselaboratories classified as C in scope can only be classified as B or C in performance, the borderline criteria being in this case 90%. Finally, laboratories are classified as A, B or C into the third dimension when they report none, one, or more than one false positive, respectively. This new evaluation/ratingconcept has been assessed with the results of EUPT-FV14, which was organized in 2012 by the EUReference Laboratory for Pesticides in Fruits and Vegetables (EURL-FV) on a matrix of pear. In this case, the Test Item contained 17 analytes to be evaluated, and 162 laboratories reported results for at least one analyte. Most frequent categories assigned to these 162 laboratories were: AAA (49.4%), BAA (13.6%) and CBA (12.3%).

© 2015 Elsevier Ltd.

 

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Published 25-04-2016, 20:20:19

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