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Greens seek fruit, veg pesticide testing

Jun 30, 2010 | Australian Associated Press | The Age

Testing of fruit and vegetables for chemical residues should be compulsory and the results made available to the public, the NSW Greens say.

National testing body FreshTest says 2.5 per cent of the produce it tests exceeds maximum residue levels for dangerous pesticides and herbicides, Fairfax newspapers report.

But the industry-run body is under no obligation to pass such results on to either the NSW government or consumers.

NSW Greens MP John Kaye has called on the NSW government to release publicly available information on agricultural chemical residues found on produce.

"There has been no independent, comprehensive testing for agricultural chemical residues in fruit and vegetables in this state since 2005," Mr Kaye said in a statement on Friday.

"The last set of publicly available results is from 2005.

"It showed 2.4 per cent of all fruit and 5.3 per cent of all vegetables sold at Sydney Markets exceeded safe limits on dangerous pesticides, herbicides and other farm chemicals."

Mr Kaye estimates the average Sydney household is likely to have purchased contaminated fruit or vegetables at least once in the past year.

"The long term health consequences of on-going exposure to endosulfan, atrazine, 2,4-D and malathion are unacceptable," he said.

Choice spokesman Christopher Zinn told AAP a test that the consumer group conducted on strawberries across Australia last year found many had above maximum residue levels.

"That's determined by how it fits into the average diet, how toxic it is considered," he explained.

"Our point is there is a lot of controversy and uncertainty in the science about pesticides and the effects on human health.

"And those people who are concerned should be able to get reliable information as to what produce tends to have higher residue levels so they can either avoid it, buy organic, or indeed prepare it in such a way as to reduce exposure in terms of peeling, washing or throwing out external leaves, such as lettuce leaves."