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🍎 Food CZ August 28, 2023

Benzalkonium chloride and imazalil in lemons from Turkey

Classification
Information notification for attention
Risk
Potentially serious
Category
fruits and vegetables
Hazard
benzalkonium chloride (BAC) - {composition} *** imazalil - {pesticide residues}
Origin
Türkiye
Notifier
Czechia
🗄
Archived (older alert)
This alert was reported 1006 days ago and has been moved from our active feed to the archive. The original safety information still applies — we have no confirmation from the issuing agency that the product is safe again. Refer to the official notice for the current status.
📈 Timeline
0 days in total
May 17, 2026 May 17, 2026
Daily snapshot data starts accumulating once the scheduler runs — for now this is interpolated from the agency's first/last dates.

What is this? Some lemons from Turkey have small amounts of two chemicals: benzalkonium chloride and imazalil.

What's happening? The Czech Republic found these chemicals in lemons and issued a warning.

Does this affect me? If you bought lemons from Turkey, you might have some of these lemons.

What should I do? Throw away the lemons or return them. Ask your pharmacist or doctor if you feel unwell after eating them.

🤖 This plain-language summary is automatically generated from the official agency notice using AI. It is for general information only — not medical advice. For decisions about your health, always consult a pharmacist or doctor and read the official source linked below.

🔬 Medical / technical details (for professionals)
Agency-published detail

Classification: Information notification for attention · Risk: Potentially serious · Category: fruits and vegetables · Hazard: benzalkonium chloride (BAC) - {composition} *** imazalil - {pesticide residues} · Origin: Türkiye · Notifier: Czechia

First published
August 28, 2023
Last refreshed by us
1 week ago
Severity (as classified)
High
Official source
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/rasff-window/screen/search?notificationReference=2023.5828

All information on this page comes from the official agency notice. We translate and summarise it; we don't add or edit facts.

Related alerts

❓ Frequently asked questions

What is this product recall alert about?
Benzalkonium chloride and imazalil in lemons from Turkey. Classification: Information notification for attention · Risk: Potentially serious · Category: fruits and vegetables · Hazard: benzalkonium chloride (BAC) - {composition} *** imazalil - {pesticide residues} · Origin: Türkiye · Notifier: Czechia
When was this alert issued?
This alert was issued on August 28, 2023 by EU RASFF.
Which countries are affected?
The alert applies to Czechia.
How serious is this alert?
Serious risk. A serious risk means the product or medicine can cause significant harm. Treat the alert as urgent.
What should I do?
If you have this product at home, stop using it and return it to the point of purchase for a refund. Keep the receipt if you have one — most retailers refund without it for safety recalls.
Where can I find the official notice?
The full official notice is published on webgate.ec.europa.eu.

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⚠️ We aggregate official notices. We do not give medical advice. For medical or legal decisions, consult the source agency and a qualified professional.