Pesticide residues on fresh food: alarm in Saxony!

Pesticide residues on fresh food: alarm in Saxony!

Sachsen, Deutschland - The discussion about pesticide residues in food gains increasingly in explosiveness. According to the current results of a small request from the alliance green state parliament member Wolfram Günther, which was carried out in Saxony, from 2021 to 2024 over 50 % of the controlled fresh products took care. The situation is particularly alarming with fresh fruit, where a whopping 75 % of the samples showed pesticide residues, as gruene fraction-sachsen.de

Günther sums it up: "Pesticides have lost nothing in food!" His analysis suggests that the use of pesticides not only increases, but that they also get into rivers and groundwater. This raises questions about food safety, especially in a country that is committed to protecting consumers. The checks of the food are good, but they vary greatly between the counties, which does not make the situation easier.

EU-wide developments

from another study published in 2022 by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), it shows that a total of 110,829 food samples were taken in the European Union. This is an increase of 25 % compared to the previous year. Fortunately, 96.3 % of these samples were within the legally permissible values. Nevertheless, the remaining 3.7 % cannot be ignored, since they could represent health risks, such as efsa.europa.eu determined.

The 11,727 samples analyzed by the EU-coordinated control program (EU MACP) were 98.4 % in order. Nevertheless, the 1.6 % of the samples that cross the limit values are a warning signal. Another reason for concern for certain types of vegetables such as head cabbage and tomatoes are another reason. While the overall rate of 2 % exceeded from 2 % in 2019 went back to 1.6 % in 2022, it turns out that the risk increases again for certain products.

The local perspective

The difference between food from Germany and the EU compared to import products from non -European countries is clear: While local and European products do well, the residues for imports are often more problematic. Here, strengthening bio-regional food producers could be a sensible step to increase food safety and reduce the use of pesticides.

The explanations of Günther and the data of the EFSA clarify one thing: It is high time that consumers are better informed and companies and authorities work together to improve the quality and safety of our food. The next time could be crucial for how we deal with pesticides in food in the future.