Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Since 1995, the Environmental Working Group has garnered a lot of attention with the annual release of its so-called "Dirty Dozen" list of fruits and vegetables found to be "highest in pesticides."
Now critics, including food scientists at the University of California, Davis, are saying: Wait a minute.
Their scientific paper published recently in The Journal of Toxicology casts doubt on some of EWG's claims.
It matters because EWG's "Shopper's Guide to Pesticides" is said to be influential in the buying decisions of millions of consumers.
The critics' message is: Relax and eat your blueberries, apples, celery and other favorites, even if they are not organically grown. There's no scientific proof that residues at the levels detected pose a risk to consumers. On top of that, there's no evidence that eating organic produce has any health benefits that surpass those of conventionally grown produce.
In fact, EWG's methodology does not appear to follow any established scientific procedures, say the study's authors, Carl Winter, director of the university's FoodSafe program and a toxicologist, and Josh Katz, a fourth-year doctoral student.
EWG contends that consumers can lower their pesticide consumption by nearly four-fifths by avoiding conventionally grown varieties of the 12 most contaminated fruits and vegetables. But the UC Davis scientists say EWG made no effort to quantify actual consumer exposure to the pesticides.
Another point the scientists make is that organic produce isn't necessarily pesticide-free. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Pesticide Data Program, which EWG uses as the basis for its data, indicated that 23 percent of organic food samples tested positive for pesticide residues.
Organic growers use pesticides, too
Longtime Belle Glade grower Paul Orsenigo, vice president of Grower's Management Inc., said the public's perception is that organic growers do not use any chemicals, but that's not true. Organic and conventional growers use many of the same fungicides and other treatments approved by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Orsenigo's operation farms lettuces, such as romaine, bibb and Boston, as well as parsley, green beans, sweet corn and sugar cane in western Palm Beach County.
"Many products are used by both. These are things that cannot be disputed," he said. "My point is, organic growers have a whole arsenal of materials that are EPA--registered that are pesticides that are used on crops that are organically produced."
A products database at www.agrian.com shows there are 423 products, such as fungicides, that can be used by organic and non-organic growers. Of course, many products for conventionally grown crops are not permitted on organic crops. But all must meet strict EPA standards.
"They are all EPA-approved," Orsenigo said. "You could have residue on an apple that came from a product such as Oxidate or Champ or something else that is approved for organic production. To say that organic food has fewer residues that may or may not be true."
He said consumers should buy produce grown in the U.S., where there are standards about what growers can use. If there is a problem, it can be traced back.
"Our philosophy is that we use pesticides judiciously and wisely," he said. "We are on a program that includes regular scouting of our crops and looking for pests, trends and patterns.
"We want to grow the kind of crops the consumer is going to buy. They are not going to eat an ear of corn with a worm in it or a head of lettuce that is infected."
123,016 servings of 'dirty' celery OK
EWG's response to those critical of its Dirty Dozen list is that the produce industry feels threatened by the rapid growth of the organic produce industry.
EWG believes Big Produce's motivation is profits and the threat posed by the rapid growth in the organic industry's market share, which jumped from 3 percent in 2000 to 11.4 percent in 2009 (even higher for some particular fruits and vegetables), EWG states on its website.
The produce industry has defended itself with its own pesticide calculator, available at http://safefruitsand
Dirty Dozen
Environmental Working Group's list of produce highest in pesticides:
Apples Celery Strawberries Peaches Spinach Nectarines (imported) Grapes (imported) Sweet bell peppers Potatoes Blueberries (domestic) Lettuce Kale/collard greens
No comments:
Post a Comment