Taiwan to Specify the Marker Residues in the Standards for Veterinary Drug Residue Limits in Foods

On April 18, 2024, the Taiwan Food and Drug Administration released a draft amendment to the Standards for Veterinary Drug Residue Limits in Foods. The draft elucidates that marker residues of veterinary drugs encompass the drug itself, its relevant metabolites and their combinations that have explicit correlation to the total residue content. Moreover, the draft introduces Table Two to specify marker residues corresponding to veterinary drugs.

Examples of marker residues of veterinary drugs in the Table Two

As is known, veterinary drugs can remain in animal bodies in their original forms or as metabolites. In the monitoring of veterinary drug residues in foods, it’s difficult to trace all kinds of residues, thus marker residues are usually considered as the target analytes in practice. Therefore, the stipulated veterinary drug residue limits refer to the limits of marker residues. The proposed draft amendment aims to clarify marker residues of corresponding veterinary drugs, thereby contributing to the standardization of veterinary drug residue monitoring in foods.