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Poison imports through the back door

Glyphosate

The Environmental protection organization GLOBAL 2000 and the Chamber of Labor Upper Austria have mangoes, pomegranates, mangetout and green beans tested for pesticides.

Pesticide residues were found on more than three quarters of the products, and in half of the cases even multiple exposures to up to seven different active ingredients. In addition to two exceedances of the legal maximum, the testers also discovered several active ingredients that are banned in the EU.

In the winter months in particular, the products examined come from countries such as Kenya, Morocco, Brazil and Turkey. These are not subject to EU legislation and therefore pesticides that are banned in the EU can be used there. However, this situation becomes piquant due to the inconsistent approach of the EU: The EU Commission withdraws the approval of pesticide active ingredients if the approval authority cannot (any longer) rule out a risk for consumers or the environment. The EU then sets the legal maximum values ​​for all products to a minimum value, the so-called limit of quantification (usually 0,01 mg/kg). However, alarmingly high maximum values ​​of up to 10 mg/kg have been set for some foods imported from non-EU countries.

double standards of the EU

Waltraud Novak, pesticide expert at GLOBAL 2000, to this: “The EU grants so-called import tolerances within the framework of trade agreements in order to 'meet the requirements of international trade'. This allows countries in which these EU-banned pesticides are still authorized to export their products to the EU. In this way, food can legally end up on European plates that contains harmful pesticides, from which consumers should be protected by the EU ban”.

Novak continues: “The tested mangoes are an example of this double standard: The active ingredient carbendazim found in our test has not been approved in the EU for a long time due to its health effects. It can cause genetic defects, affect fertility and even harm the unborn child. In mangoes, however, this pesticide has a maximum value of 0,5 mg/kg, which is fifty times the limit of quantification of 0,01 mg”.

Health must come before profit

Novak also refers to the effects outside the EU: “Workers in the production countries have to handle such highly dangerous active substances – often with insufficient protective equipment. We also found such pesticides, which are banned in the EU, in beans and sugar snap peas from Kenya.”

GLOBAL 2000 and the Upper Austrian Chamber of Labor are demanding Health Minister Johannes Rauch, therefore, to work at EU level to ensure that harmful pesticides do not end up on our plates via detours. There must be no import tolerances into the EU for dangerous active ingredients!

What can consumers do?

Novak recommends consumers to pay attention to seasonality and regionality when shopping: "Seasonal, regional products are usually less contaminated with pesticides. However, only products from organic farming are really safe, since no chemical-synthetic pesticides are used in organic farming”.

Consumers can also find out about the current pesticide contamination of fruit and vegetables, for example at www.billa.at/prp. The supermarket chain Billa, in cooperation with GLOBAL 2000, regularly publishes the results of its in-house residue controls there. Weekly samples of the entire fresh fruit and vegetable range are checked for pesticide residues in accredited laboratories and the results are published on the website.

In the soil, in the water, in the air and in our food: pesticides threaten biodiversity and endanger our health. The EU Commission has introduced a law to reduce pesticides by 50% by 2030. GLOBAL 2000 is doing with the current petition "Poison for the bee. poison for you" Pressure on those responsible in Austria to constructively and courageously push ahead with the EU pesticide reduction. 

Photo / Video: Shutterstock.

Written by Option

Option is an idealistic, fully independent and global social media platform on sustainability and civil society, founded in 2014 by Helmut Melzer. Together we show positive alternatives in all areas and support meaningful innovations and forward-looking ideas - constructive-critical, optimistic, down to earth. The option community is dedicated exclusively to relevant news and documents the significant progress made by our society.

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