Archived press release

Retailers must reduce pesticide levels in babies' and children's food

14 March 2002

A new report from Friends of the Earth [1] published today concludes that exposure to pesticides at a young age may be responsible for serious health effects, particularly in later life. FOE is challenging supermarkets to put babies and young children first by eliminating residues from the foods they eat. New government data on pesticide residues is released later today [2].

The Government's latest pesticide residue results will include foods popular with children such as pizzas and crisps, as well as fresh fruits, such as peaches and nectarines. FOE wants such food, particularly fresh fruit and vegetables, to be prioritised for residue reduction. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that children should eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables each day. FOE agrees that fruit and veg consumption should be increased but is concerned that unless action is taken now, children will also be exposed to increased pesticide levels in the name of healthy eating. Recent government data shows that almost half of the fresh fruit and vegetables sold in supermarkets contain pesticides residues. While most were at low levels, some exceeded the safety limits for young children.

Friends of the Earth has examined existing scientific evidence about risk to unborn babies, infants and young children. The conclusions of FOE's report include:

• Unborn babies, infants and young children are particularly vulnerable to the hazards of pesticides because they are at crucial stages of development.
• The increase in behavioural disorders among children in industrial countries could be related to the pesticides to which unborn babies are exposed. Subtle harm done to the brain early in life may not become evident until much later. Such effects are difficult to detect in the laboratory studies used by government to decide on whether a pesticide can be approved for use.
• Babies and children are more exposed to pesticides in food because, in proportion to their bodyweight, they eat a greater proportion of food than adults. Children are also more at risk from pesticides used in the home and garden as they will have more contact with them when playing.
• There is increasing concern about the exposure to hormone disrupting pesticides in early life. Even at low levels, this may lead to serious health problems. It is thought that trends such as falling sperm counts, increases in some cancers, and girls entering puberty earlier, may be linked to hormone disrupters.
• Children living in agricultural areas around the world have been found to have pesticides in their bodies and links have been found to serious health effects such as birth defects and cancer.
• In the US special protection for children is written into the law on pesticides but no such provision has been made for children in the UK.
• In July new regulations will be introduced prohibiting pesticide residues in processed baby food. The same restrictions should apply to fresh fruit and vegetables so the same level of protection is applied to baby food made at home.
  

FOE wants the Government to give greater protection to babies and children, but retailers should act ahead of legislation to get pesticides out of the food they sell.

FOE has accused retailers of not delivering on the claims and promises they make on pesticides. Sainsbury's in particular has been trying hard to convince its customers that it is taking action on pesticides, via glossy adverts, its website and letters to shoppers [3]. Yet in reality about half the fruit and vegetables sampled from Sainsbury' stores was found to contain pesticide residues [4] and the retailer has yet to publish a clear policy on pesticide reduction. Sainsbury's has also refused to publish details of its own residue testing.

By contrast, last year the Co-op and M&S announced that they were banning a range of pesticides, restricting the use of many others, and both retailers now publish their own pesticide testing data on their websites - the only retailers to do so. They are both working with suppliers to find alternatives to the most risky pesticides and to extend their list of prohibited products.

Sandra Bell, food and farming campaigner for Friends of the Earth said:

“Retailers have a responsibility to sell safe food. This includes making sure it does not contain harmful pesticides. Infants need special protection from pesticide exposure - the harm done early in life can have serious health consequences later. Retailers should put be putting babies and children first by removing pesticides from the food they eat.

Now its time for supermarkets to deliver on their promises by prohibiting the use of the most risky pesticides and helping the farmers that supply them to find alternatives. And retailers should come clean with their customers by publishing the results of their residue testing - so far only the Co-op and M&S have been honest enough to do this.”

NOTES

[1] Full report - Into the mouths of babes available on www.foe.co.uk/resource/briefings/mouths_babes.pdf (PDF format - 54K) or on request from the media unit.

[2] Results expected at 14.00 today www.pesticides.gov.uk

[3] On its website, Sainsbury's claimed to be “making a stand” on pesticides and in letters has said that pesticides are only used “ as a last resort ” by the growers that supply them. In late 2000 Sainsbury's ran a series of full colour adverts in magazines featuring an apple labelled “pesticide” and an apple labelled “countryside” with a ladybird perched on it, together with text about natural methods of pest control. A complaint against Sainsbury's to the Advertising Standards Agency was upheld on the basis that these adverts could mislead customers into thinking that pesticides were not used on Sainsbury's fruit and veg.

[4] FOE's analysis of government data (1998 - 2001) showed that nearly half (48%) of fruit and veg sampled from Sainsbury's contained pesticide residues.

Examples of residues in Sainsbury's food from 1999 and 2000 include:

• Three quarters of the apple samples contained chlorpyrifos, an organophosphate pesticide restricted in the US because of concerns about its safety for children
• all the samples of grapes in 1999 contained iprodione, a suspected hormone disrupter

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust