This article looks at a contentious issue - how individual countries choose to manage their food industry and what is termed "acceptable exposure" levels when it comes to chemical residues.

The importance of "Country of Origin" labelling has huge significance. Some countries literally dip their fruit and vegetables in chemicals that other countries would not dream of doing, but these produce items still make their way to our supermarket shelves.

Sourced from Fairfax Media, 1st September 2008

Organic agriculture advocates say the discovery of pesticides in imported Australian vegetables supports calls by mainstream growers for country of origin labels on this side of the Tasman.

The Soil and Health Association said the insecticide dimethoate was found in the Australian capsicum labeled "Product of New Zealand" sold at an Auckland Woolworth's supermarket. This was a clear breach not only of the voluntary origin labelling at the the supermarket but of the Fair Trading Act, the association said. It alleged that the "NZ Hothouse" three pack of capsicm appeared to have been "topped up" with Australian produce that had been dipped in dimethoate.

Dimethoate, a systemic organophosphate insecticide, is used as an insecticidal dip to kill the Queensland fruit fly in produce imported from Australia. It is difficult to rinse off. The New Zealand name was dominant on the hot-house packaging, with a tiny "produce of Australia" label, said Soil and Health spokesman Steffan Browne of Blenheim.

The pesticide showed up during a sampling survey the association carried out to check on the incidence of another chemical, endosulfan. Mr Browning said that some local packhouses might also be repackaging Australian tomatoes. Four out of six samples of loose New Zealand tomatoes showed no pesticide residues at all, and none contained dimethoate, but the pesticide was found in Australian tomatoes, capsicum and zucchini from Blenheim's Countdown supermarket.

The level in zucchini was more than twice the allowed maximum residue level, and the zucchini and capsicums were labelled only as imported, and did not mention Australia as their country of origin. Unlabelled capsicum from a Pak N'Save supermarket in Moorhouse Ave, Christchurch also contained dimethoate.

New Zealand tomato growers do not use dimethoate or the related chemical omethoate. Only 25 percent of the 24 produce samples taken showed not detectable residue in multi-residue testing. Soil and Health said the findings of dimethoate showed serious breaches of the voluntary country of origin labelling the supermarket owners, Foodstuffs and Progressive Enterprises, said they used. "Voluntary labelling is not working, either not at all or is poorly utilised, and certainly not enforcable," said Mr Browning.

Soil and Health has submitted the pesticide residue information to the Parliamentary Select Committee on health, which is considering a Green Party initiated petition calling for mandatory country of origin labels. A mainstream grower lobby, Horticulture New Zealand, has also called for mandatory labelling, but not on the grounds that it is necessary for food safety reasons.

-NZPA