A novel method for pesticide analysis in refined sugar samples using a gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC-MS/MS) and simple solvent extraction method

► A GC-MS/MS method was developed for quantification of 11 pesticides in sugar samples. ► This method was accurate (⩾99%) as it possesses LOD in the 0.1 μg kg−1 range. ► The recovery was achieved at the lowest levels of detection ranges from 82% to 104%. ► Out of 27 samples, one sample showed chlorpyrifos concentration of 0.22 μg kg−1. ► This study showed that Indian sugar is free from the commonly-used pesticides.