The main purpose of this paper is to evaluate the food safety and environmental impacts of fruits grown under the “Zero residue” concept as a novel agricultural practice.
Four fruit growers from the Republic of Serbia producing eight agricultural commodities: raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, pumpkin, cherry, apple, watermelon and melons participated in this study. Food safety aspects were evaluated through on-site assessments of good agricultural practice. The environmental footprint of these commodities was calculated employing life-cycle assessment.
The exploratory findings highlight significant gaps in producers’ understanding of risks, particularly regarding food safety control and traceability. Key issues include inadequate risk evaluation, poor record-keeping of plant protection product usage and insufficient control plans. The “Zero residue concept” shows environmental benefits for raspberries, blueberries and pumpkins, with lower global warming potential and fossil resource depletion. However, it results in higher ozone depletion, eutrophication and toxicity impacts for certain crops like cherries, watermelons and melons, influenced by farming practices and climate conditions.
By addressing both food safety and environmental issues through an improved risk-based approach, producers can better manage environmental impacts and food safety risks, delivering healthier products to consumers and fostering sustainable farming practices.
For the first time, the “Zero Residue” concept as an agricultural practice was evaluated from food safety and environmental perspectives.
