According to a survey by 60 Millions de consommateurs magazine, frozen fruits and vegetables contain more pesticides than those sold in the fresh section. Here are the products to avoid for your health.
The magazine 60 Million Consumers hit hard again. An investigation into pesticides has just been published, and it is already causing a stir. It must be said that this is a subject of public interest, coupled with a health emergency. In fact, the association analyzed several references to frozen products, fruits and vegetables only, and concluded that these frozen foods contain far too many pesticides. To everyone’s surprise, some bags of frozen fruits and vegetables contain even more pesticides than those sold fresh. How is this possible and how do I navigate it?
Why are frozen foods more contaminated than fresh products?
Dangerous substances banned in France
Tons of pesticides, chemical substances dangerous to health and banned within the European Union and French territory…: this is what the teams of 60 Millions, who set about analyzing nearly 8 families of fruits and vegetables sold on the shelves. Apricots, raspberries, carrots, beans… In all, 134 products were scrutinized and we found organic, conventional, frozen and canned. This survey revealed that frozen products are more contaminated by pesticides, with 1 in 2 products containing chemicals such as carbenzadim, a fungicide. banned in Europe for 10 years.
“The measured levels all remain below the maximum residue limits (MRLs) set by European regulations”note our colleagues, who discovered no less than 31 different moleculesthe majority of which are fungicides.
Why are frozen products more contaminated with pesticides?
Food specialist 60 million consumersPatricia Chairopoulos, specifies having found during the tests carried out “two/three substances banned in France and the European Union in green beans and frozen raspberries”. An alarming finding, even if 57% of the samples tested contain no pesticide residue. But how can frozen products be more contaminated than fresh products? The magazine 60 Millions explains that frozen fruits and vegetables are placed directly in the cold after picking, which does not give time for the chemical molecules present to degrade.
Pesticides: frozen or fresh, which fruits and vegetables to avoid?
What frozen fruits and vegetables should you avoid?
According to this study, fruits and vegetables to avoid buying frozen during your shopping are raspberries (twice more contaminated when frozen than fresh), green beans and peas. “They contain the most pesticide residues and potential or proven endocrine disruptors”explain 60 Millions in his conclusions.
What about organic products?
Certain fruits and vegetables must be eaten organic, because some contain fewer pesticides. This is the case for green beans which, on average, contain 2.5 pesticide residues for the conventional version compared to 0.1 for the organic version. Still according to analyzes from 60 million consumers, it is better to favor fresh and organic green beans, apricots, carrots and raspberries to avoid ingesting chemical substances and being in contact with endocrine disruptors.
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