HC Deb 26 June 2002 vol 387 cc909-10W
Mr. Andrew Turner

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps are being taken to ensure that traces of(a) pesticides and (b) other plant treatments which are banned in the United Kingdom are not found on fresh imported produce. [60835]

Mr. Morley

There are a large number of substances which are not approved as pesticides in the UK but may be used in other countries. Differences in approvals between countries can arise because different approval conditions are applied or because commercial approvals are not sought in all countries. The fact that a compound is not approved in the UK does not mean that residues of that compound in imported produce are unsafe.

The Government conduct a wide-ranging annual surveillance programme for pesticide residues in food including imported food. Some 4,000 samples are analysed annually and the programme generates results for over 100,000 pesticide/commodity food combinations. All the results are published on a website: www.pesticides.gov.uk/committees/PRC/prc.htm.

The surveillance programme includes monitoring for some of the compounds among the 21 banned throughout the EU.