Support for
Growth

In the vast majority of cases there is very little pesticide residue left on fruit by the time it gets to consumers.This is because pesticides are often applied early in the process and by the time the product reaches shelves there is likely to be no residue or very little left on the product.

Apple and pear growers support a chemical residue testing service–the National Residue Survey –which is independently run by the Australian Government and funded by grower levies. Hundreds of samples of apples and pears are tested every year for chemical residues and the results are compared with maximum residue limits (MRLs)–the highest level of chemical residue that is legally allowed–to see if there are any breaches.

Results over the last ten years show that the industry has exceptionally high compliance–that is, the vast majority of samples tested are well within the approved limits. The latest National Residue Survey results for apples and pears (2016–17)show that 98 percent of apples and pears tested fully comply with maximum residues limits. For those non-complying samples, follow-up action is taken with the supplier to rectify the situation.

It is always good food-safety practice to give apples and pears (as with any other fresh produce) a final rinse under running water before eating them, particularly around the calyx(base) and around the stalk. This will help to remove any unwanted residues that may be left on the fruit.

No. An exceedance of an MRL is not necessarily a risk to public health. This is because there are safety factors built into the limit. In other words, the MRL is set well below an amount of chemical residue that would result in a safety concern.

In most cases anacceptable daily intake (ADI) is established for chemicals and used in dietary exposure assessments. The ADI is the amount of a chemical you need to be exposed to every day for your entire life for a health issue to occur.

A one-off exposure to a very small amount of residue is not a safety concern. If consumers are concerned, APALalso recommends washing fruit before consumption to further minimise the small risk of residues being present.

The industry is continuing to strive towards reducing residue and is aiming for 100 per cent of fruit under maximum residue levels for agricultural chemicals.

MRLs apply to all food sold in Australia.

Australia imports a very small quantity of raw apples from New Zealand and China, and a few Asian style raw pears (nashi) from South Korea.

Other than most foods from New Zealand, food imported into Australia, including fresh produce and processed foods, are subject to inspection under the Imported Food Control Act 1992. This includes the maximum residue limits (MRLs)–the highest level of chemical residue that is legally allowed–for agricultural and veterinary chemical residues in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

Some imported foods are subject to screening for agricultural and veterinary chemical residues under the Imported Food Inspection Scheme, which is managed by the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources. Screening occurs at the border upon arrival and if the imports don’t fall under the MRL they must be destroyed, re-exported or treated so they comply.

The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources currently monitors five per cent of imported fruit consignments for agricultural and veterinary chemical residues and five per cent of canned fruit for lead and tin.This monitoring applies to imported apples and pears but does not apply to apples and pears from New Zealand.This monitoring is funded by importers and is published on the Department’s website. The six-monthly report for January to July 2016 reported 99.6 per cent compliance with analytical tests applied to imported foods. These analytical tests included tests for agricultural and veterinary chemical residues and lead and tin in imported fruit.

APAL has been asked in the past about apple and pears’ inclusion in the ‘Dirty Dozen’ report on products containing pesticides.The ‘Dirty Dozen’ report is prepared annually and reports only on produce from the USA–it has nothing to do with Australian apples.The report’s findings are widely discredited by reputable and expert scientific agencies and the US Department of Agriculture consistently reports that “residues do not pose a safety concern”. There are a few good reads to further explain this including: The American Council on Science and Health’s article EWG’s Dirty Dozen List–A Bell Curve For Food Elites (8 March 2017) and the Alliance for Food and Farming’s article EWG Attempts to Re-Spark Interest in Decades-Old “Dirty Dozen” List AFF Repeats Its Call to Read Actual Government Report.

Nevertheless, APAL encourages and promotes the use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) to manage pests with less pesticides. The industry recognises the need to reduce chemical usage and is responding to it.

Apples are exceptionally nutritious foods and many of the nutrients and benefits of apples are in the skin. The benefits of eating apples with the skin on far outweigh any small risk of eating an apple or pear with residue on it that exceeds the maximum residue limit (MRL) or the even less likely risk of the apple containing an amount of chemical residue that may be a health concern.

It is always good food safety practice to give apples and pears (as with any other fresh produce) a final rinse under running water before eating them, particularly around the calyx (base) and around the stalk.This will help to remove any unwanted residues that may be left on the fruit.