Pesticide safety advice for children to be withdrawn26 March 2002
The Advisory Committee on Pesticides (ACP) is recommending that the Government withdraw long-standing safety advice aimed at reducing children's exposure to pesticides. Professor David Coggan, chairman of the committee told the BBC that it had decided to "revise the advice".
The recommendation that children's fruit and vegetables should be peeled, was originally issued by the Government's Chief Medical Officer in 1997, following concern over small children's exposure to pesticides. This is now routinely given by Government departments in response to parental inquiries about pesticide residues in food, is the only practical advice currently given about reducing children's exposure to these potentially dangerous chemicals.
Friends of the Earth has written to ministers urging them not to abandon the advice because residues of risky pesticides - which sometimes exceeds safety levels set for children - still frequently occur in fruit and vegetables. Peeling reduces these residues, although it will not remove them completely.
The original recommendation to withdraw the advice came from the Food Standards Agency which is concerned that "misinterpretation" of the advice could imply that "only organic fruit should be supplied to the National School Fruit Scheme" . This scheme aims to provide young children with a free piece of fruit at school each day to increase their consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables.
"Research shows the pesticide levels in our fruit and veg sometimes exceed safety limits for children - and this puts them at risk. Some of the chemicals used in pesticides have been linked to brain damage and disruption of the hormone system said Friends of the Earth Food and Farming Campaigner Sandra Bell. "The Government should do more to reduce pesticide use, and should ensure that fruit in the National School Fruit Scheme is free of toxic residues. Until the Government can be certain that the fruit and veg that children eat is residue-free,
the peeling advice must remain".
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