In-package nonthermal plasma degradation of pesticides on fresh produce

•In-package nonthermal plasma treatment of strawberries with pesticide residues.•Mixture of azoxystrobin, cyprodinil, fludioxonil and pyriproxyfen employed.•Electrical and optical characterisation of plasma.•GC-MS/MS reveals successful degradation of pesticides in strawberries. In-package nonthermal plasma (NTP) technology is a novel technology for the decontamination of foods and biological materials. This study presents the first report on the potential of the technology for the degradation of pesticide residues on fresh produce. A cocktail of pesticides, namely azoxystrobin, cyprodinil, fludioxonil and pyriproxyfen was tested on strawberries. The concentrations of these pesticides were monitored in priori and post-plasma treatment using GC-MS/MS. An applied voltage and time dependent degradation of the pesticides was observed for treatment voltages of 60, 70 and 80kV and treatment durations ranging from 1 to 5min, followed by 24h in-pack storage. The electrical characterisation revealed the operation of the discharge in a stable filamentary regime. The discharge was found to generate reactive oxygen and excited nitrogen species as observed by optical emission spectroscopy.