Toxic Residues on Fruit and Vegetables
How to Remove Potentially Harmful Chemicals, Pesticides and Bacteria
Jul 3, 2009
Contaminants such as pesticides and waxes are designed to be waterproof, so while rinsing in water will remove some impurities, using a fruit and vegetable wash can remove 100 times more contaminants.
Leanne Wesche is the Managing Director of Safeguard Fruit & Veggie Wash and has been working in the fruit and vegetable industry for more than a decade. She told Suite101 the majority of farmers do the right thing, but there are some who do not take the appropriate care.
“People think if they go to a local growers’ market that they are getting fresher and better vegetables. But usually they have no regulations, whereas Australian supermarkets, (and those in a number of other countries,) impose quality assurance standards.
These standards make sure they’re using the right pesticides, check the spray times and water quality from sprinklers and other factors.”
E. coli Bacteria and Fruit and Vegetables
In 2006, at least three people were killed and more than 200 others in the United States and Canada became sick after consuming spinach.
Tests later revealed that samples of cattle manure from pasture surrounding the spinach field tested positive for the same strain of E. coli that lead to the outbreak.
Wesche says that people need to remember where their food is coming from.
“Fruit and vegetables usually come from fields where there are birds and animals that can contaminate them through their droppings. People get sick from eating fruit and vegetables that have been contaminated with E. coli all the time.”
Call for Mandatory Testing of Chemical Residues
In Australia the New South Wales Green Party has called for the mandatory testing of chemical residues on fruit and vegetables after it was revealed in July 2009 that 2.5% of produce either exceeds the maximum residue levels for dangerous pesticides and herbicides or contains traces of chemicals that have not been approved for use on the crop.
Greens MP Dr John Kaye told The Sydney Morning Herald that means every household in the state was likely to be exposed to dangerous chemicals from fresh produce at least once a year.
"Protecting households, and in particular young people, is more important than appeasing the big fruit and vegetable wholesalers. Consumers are being badly let down by a government that allows producers to do what they like, regardless of the consequences for consumers."
However Martin Clark from the industry-run national testing body FreshTest said the legal limit for residue levels is about a hundred times less than what would be deemed an unsafe limit.
Washing Fruit and Vegetables Before Eating
Leanne Wesche says surveys have shown 8 out of 10 people wash their fruit and vegetables with water, which isn’t enough to remove all of the potentially harmful chemicals, pesticides and bacteria.
Wesche says independent laboratories, certified by the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA), have conducted tests that found Safeguard Fruit & Veggie Wash removes up to 100 times more contaminants than water alone.
Safeguard Fruit & Veggie Wash was developed by food scientists and technologists after trialing 300 different formulas.
Wesche says Safeguard Fruit and Veggie Wash is made out of purely out of organic and natural ingredients that will not alter the taste of the produce.
A Simple Fruit and Vegetable Wash To Make At Home
To make a simple fruit and vegetable wash at home, mix the juice of one lemon, 2 tablespoons of distilled white vinegar, and one cup of tap water.
This mixture can be put into a spray bottle and sprayed onto fruit and vegetables before rinsing in water and preparing to be eaten.
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