UK votes to keep highly toxic pesticide19 March 2003
The highly toxic pesticide aldicarb will continue to be used on vegetables in the UK following a decision by European farm ministers. Friends of the Earth learned that UK Agriculture Minister Lord Whitty voted in favour of the compromise position which allows eight member states including the UK to continue using aldicarb on some vegetable crops for so-called "essential use".
Aldicarb is used to kill insects and nematodes on crops. It is a highly toxic pesticide and is classified by the World Health Organisation as "extremely hazardous". It works on the nervous system in a similar way to organophosphates. Residues of aldicarb have been found in food exceeding safety levels for young children.
The decision makes a mockery of the EU review of pesticides, which states that "essential use" should not be granted if the substance has harmful effects on human or animal health and should only be allowed where no efficient alternatives exist.
In the UK aldicarb will continue to be authorised for use on potatoes, parsnips, carrots, onions and 'ornamentals' (decorative plants). The "essential use" status was because it was argued that alternatives are not available. However well known alternatives include other chemical control methods and changes in farming methods, such as crop rotation, and using diverse vegetable varieties.
Residues can be reduced by peeling potatoes rather than eating them in their skins, but the Government withdrew advice on peeling fruit and vegetables last year. Aldicarb was recently found in samples of chips from fish and chip shops. Aldicarb is also potentially very harmful to farmland wildlife. It is estimated that one granule is enough to kill a small bird.
The decision is good news for pesticide company Bayer who have been promoting their aldicarb-based product 'Temik' with full page adverts in the farming press.
"The review of aldicarb has been going on for years. The Government should have used this time to ensure that safe non-chemical means of pest and disease control were available to farmers," said Friends of the Earth's Real Food Campaigner, Sandra Bell.
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