Pesticides in our food

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 13 Dec 2014, 11:41

"Over 97% of foods in EU contain pesticide residues within legal limits"
That's the headline. But read on:

"More than 97% of all samples analysed as part of the latest Europe-wide monitoring programme of pesticides in foods contain residue levels that fall within legal limits - with over 54% of samples free from any detectable trace of the chemicals."

So, leaving aside for the moment the very real issue as to whether the EU legal limits are sufficient to protect our health, more than 2% of our food has more pesticide in it that is legally allowed and 46% contains measurable quantities of pesticide.
Eat organic or eat poison.
http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/press/news/141211b.htm

Green Party policy on Food and Agriculture:
http://policy.greenparty.org.uk/fa.html

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 13 Dec 2014, 13:15

It would be interesting to know which pesticides we are eating: how much of the cereals we eat contain Glyphosate, for example?

Potemkin Villager · Post by **Potemkin Villager** » 13 Dec 2014, 14:03

http://www.independent.ie/business/iris ... 25621.html

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 13 Dec 2014, 14:13

That sounds a bit I****

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 13 Dec 2014, 14:14

Potemkin Villager wrote:http://www.independent.ie/business/iris ... 25621.html

I checked to see if it was published on 1st April, but no!

Tarrel · Post by **Tarrel** » 13 Dec 2014, 20:52

kenneal - lagger wrote:It would be interesting to know which pesticides we are eating: how much of the cereals we eat contain Glyphosate, for example?

We probably don't want to know!

I'm aware of a farmer who sprays his cereals with a low concentration to dehydrate them before harvest, thus reducing the amount of drying needed, and saving fuel. I understand it's fairly common practice.

Then there's the soya and corn oil, genetically modified to be resistant to Glyphosate, so the crops can be over-sprayed to keep the weeds down.

Potemkin Villager · Post by **Potemkin Villager** » 13 Dec 2014, 22:37

kenneal - lagger wrote:
Potemkin Villager wrote:http://www.independent.ie/business/iris ... 25621.html
I checked to see if it was published on 1st April, but no!

No but hacks can be very easily taken in with technobabble!

He is getting on a bit (well ino his 80s) and at one stage his son in law was taken hostage by the IRA. He seems to have developed a planetry saviour complex common amongst ageing academics many who seem to have an irresistable urge to try and produce some sort of magic silver bullet that will save the world, allow BAU to continue unabated and ensure their perpetual place in hisory.

emordnilap · Post by **emordnilap** » 15 Dec 2014, 15:50

It all sounds very, very doubtful but are there any opinions from scientifically-minded people here?

http://www.viaqua.com/how-it-works/

biffvernon · Post by **biffvernon** » 15 Dec 2014, 19:00

emordnilap wrote:It all sounds very, very doubtful

You got it.

Post by **kenneal - lagger** » 15 Dec 2014, 19:26

Meanwhile the EU, no doubt at the request of their Corporate masters, are going to ban all heirloom seeds so we can only buy hybrid seeds from the major manufacturers. Saving seeds and growing non licensed seeds will be a criminal offence. Even if we did save seed from plants from last years seed they would be no good because most of the seed now sold by major manufacturers is hybrid and doesn't do well in the second year.

This really is Corporatism gone mad. Our politicians are looking for a revolution if they keep going on like this. We are becoming slaves to the corporations which are really now the Axis of Evil on this planet.

Someone else's turn for a rant!!!

Oh yes! Please sign the petition and get all your gardener friends to sign it as well.

I've started a new topic for discussion of this thread.