Partial carcinogen – pesticide cocktail discovered in pepper

Anthraquinon, Thiamethoxam or Indoxacarb: some names of a total of 37 pesticides, some of which have not been approved in the EU for years, but which can still be demonstrated in a Greenpeace market control by 13 peppers. Limit values ​​were also exceeded twice, the NGO reported on Monday and therefore called for stricter protective standards.

“Paprika powder is one of the most popular herbs in Austria, but with these test results the appetite disappears,” was the summary of Sebastian Theissing-Matei, agricultural expert at Greenpeace. The enormous tension “with real pesticide cocktails” was surprising, as substances were found that are, for example, cancer or damage the nervous system.

Small residues in organic products
Plant protection residues from 10 to 19 active ingredients were found in the conventional powders, including those associated with nerve damage, hormone disorders or fertility damage. The use of twelve of the substances found is even forbidden in the EU and two samples were described as particularly alarming, because the applicable limit values ​​were exceeded here.

The paprika “Las Hermanas Sharp” was 13 times more stressed with the carcinogenic pesticide “Anthrachinon”. The paprika powder “Kotányi pepper Scharf” contained almost twice as much of the chlorphenapyr of pesticides. As a positive marginal phenomenon of the test, the three organic products performed much better.

Chlorate found in almost all samples
Chlorate, on the other hand, was found in almost all conventional and biological rehearsals. This is forbidden as a pesticide in the EU, but can be used as a disinfectant and could have entered the paprika powder in drinking water treatment and in this way, Greenpeace reported. According to the NGO, the peppers that have been incorporated into powder from Spain, Hungary, but also Peru or China. According to the supermarkets, most of the products investigated comes from Spain.

NGO sees politics on the train
Greenpeace called for the test results of Minister of Agriculture Norbert Tettschnig (ÖVP) and Minister of Health Korinna Schumann (Spö) to work for stricter controls at European level. Similarly, forbidden pesticides in the EU must also be prohibited in food on the EU market, regardless of where they were grown.

Politics and retail must also increase their efforts in order to expand organic farming or organic offers. The current test again underlines the considerably better environmental balance of organically produced food.