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Pesticide Safety Advice for Children to be Withdrawn

26 Mar 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 today admitted to the BBC that it had decided to "revise the advice".

The advice, 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. The recommendation, which 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.

FOE 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 give all young children a free piece of fruit at school each day to increase their consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Professor David Coggan told the BBC that the advice "was sensible precautionary advice at the time. There's been a lot more research conducted since, and that's resolved the uncertainty and so we are able to revise the advice."

Although the committee has gone along with the FSA's suggestion, it is unlikely to go as far as saying that unpeeled fruit and veg is "safe". Two papers considered by the ACP show that safety levels for toddlers are likely to be exceeded for a range of pesticides used on fruit and vegetables.

Sandra Bell, food and farming campaigner for Friends of the Earth said
"It's appalling that the FSA and Government pesticide advisers want to abandon this important safety advice for children. Youngsters should be encouraged to eat more fruit and vegetables without being exposed to unnecessary health risks. 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.

"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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