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EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

foodwatch.org

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Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#101

Post by NopIdoN »

daedrdev wrote: post #32
bijowo1676 wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

EU generally leads the developed world in regulation, that has become a meme and a joke. but for Food related stuff, EU standards and regulation are truly superior for consumers, relative to US and other countries

The United States has far stricter labeling standards than the EU. That's why US products appear to have more ingredients, they are required to say what their ingredients are mad from, even on identical products. Many things that are well known memes are completely false. Not everything in the EU is better regulated. Everyone always complains about chlorinated chicken, not realizing that <5% of US chicken is washed t…

I fear you have been vinegar brain washed. Like this talking point was dilled into you

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#102

Post by franciscop »

nozzlegear wrote: post #16

The report itself[†] blames the pesticide residue on a "boomerang effect" from EU countries: EU countries export these banned pesticides to third countries, those countries use the banned pesticides on the food they grow, and then the EU countries import that food. In effect, EU companies are still profiting off of the sale and use of banned pesticides on food that Europeans will eat. [†] https://www.foodwatch.org/fi…

I know someone close who grows oranges in Spain. He has to go through hell, had to rework multiple times the fields so that they pass the strict Spanish regulation for organic produce. They get evaluated not only on the final product being pesticide free, but also on the full process being compliant, with heavy fines for non compliance.

This is fine-ish, except that the imported oranges get checked only seldomly (if that) and are given a lot of leeway, making it very hard to compete if you grow them locally. Last couple of years saw some profit for growing them locally, but it's been times where there was literally no profit at all for 5+ years.

Funny story: he requested a permit to build a well, and ofc it takes forever so he just waited. After 4-5 years waiting, having even forgotten about it, someone called him: "we're here to inspect the well". What well? You haven't given me permission yet. "yes, we know, but people build them anyway before getting permission so we thought you'd do the same".

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#103

Post by burnt-resistor »

dirck-norman wrote: post #23
burnt-resistor wrote: post #5

There are all kinds of toxic residues and contaminants in the US food supply because there's a lack of testing, lack of regulation, lack of enforcement, and a lack of the precautionary principle. Meanwhile, farmers will continue spraying RoundUp on oats just before harvest, rice grown in the US will contain arsenic from naturally-occurring contaminated soils, and almost all bread contains toxic crap banned in the res…

There is some weird obsession on the internet about proving the U.S. is the worst at everything. Believe me, the majority of “The rest of the world” does not protect its citizens from harmful food contamination.

[flagged]

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#104

Post by kube-system »

bluGill wrote: post #97
kube-system wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but we understand modern science as it pertains to both... which is why lead is controlled for both organic and non-organic farming. Honestly curious, which of these is more harmful than the non-organic alternatives? https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-7/subtitle-B/chapter-I/su...

I used lead as an example only because everyone actually understands why it's harmful. There are a number of chemicals that are more harmful, common vinegar for example in the concentrations that are useful, but nobody understands it because nobody has actually read the safety information on such chemicals.

I would imagine any agricultural use of vinegar as an organic chemical pales in comparison to it’s culinary use.

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#105

Post by thesmtsolver2 »

im3w1l wrote: post #91
thesmtsolver2 wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> EU countries export these banned pesticides to third countries Shouldn't EU ban ideally exports of good that it bans internally?

Only if you see the world in black and white and those pesticides being an absolute evil. But if you see it as a complicated tradeoff where whats right for one country can be wrong for another then it's unproblematic.

> But if you see it as a complicated tradeoff where whats right for one country can be wrong for another then it's unproblematic.

How can anyone entertain that belief unless:

a) they think people in other countries have a different biology

b) profits matter more than the health of people in other countries (mostly former colonies of Europe)

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#106

Post by thesmtsolver2 »

NopIdoN wrote: post #94
thesmtsolver2 wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

https://www.tilleydistribution.com/insights/food-regulations... The European approach to food additives is visible. The EFSA assigns a 3- or 4-digit code to every food additive, and that number must be included on food labels if it’s used in a product. The EFSA believes this system makes it easier for consumers to look up and memorize specific additives. In the US, those same additives are required to be printed out…

That's not stricter, it's just different names.

It is stricter.

https://www.daymarksafety.com/news/some-fundamental-differen...

   EU labels are not required to list as much information about nutrients in a product as compared to US food labels. Plus, they often omit such items as saturated fat, fiber, and sugar.

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#107

Post by wahnfrieden »

SchemaLoad wrote: post #78
brikym wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People still use tea bags even though they're a top source of microplastics.

People don't even know. I had long assumed that it was only the obvious nylon pyramid tea bags that were plastic, and only recently discovered it's _all_ tea bags.

Source?

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#108

Post by jenadine »

franciscop wrote: post #102
nozzlegear wrote: post #16

The report itself[†] blames the pesticide residue on a "boomerang effect" from EU countries: EU countries export these banned pesticides to third countries, those countries use the banned pesticides on the food they grow, and then the EU countries import that food. In effect, EU companies are still profiting off of the sale and use of banned pesticides on food that Europeans will eat. [†] https://www.foodwatch.org/fi…

I know someone close who grows oranges in Spain. He has to go through hell, had to rework multiple times the fields so that they pass the strict Spanish regulation for organic produce. They get evaluated not only on the final product being pesticide free, but also on the full process being compliant, with heavy fines for non compliance. This is fine-ish, except that the imported oranges get checked only seldomly (if…

> strict Spanish regulation for organic produce.

Organic labels are a different thing than official regulation though. IMHO organic labels optimize for the wrong things.

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#109

Post by jenadine »

i5heu wrote: post #37
darth_avocado wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Organic is just green washing, it doesn’t mean no chemicals. Plenty of organic products contain toxic chemicals and heavy metals. Organic oats have been found to contain glyphosate. Organic spices have been found to contain heavy metals.

At least in Germany we have “Bio” which is a organic label that is controlled at least somewhat.

But it is controlled for the wrong criterias. "Natural" doesn't mean healthy or good for the environment. It is only greenwashing and "appeal to nature" fallacy

Re: EU-banned pesticides found in rice, tea and spices

#110

Post by stackghost »

OkayPhysicist wrote: post #83
otherme123 wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The message you respond to talks about "food stuff", which is admitedly blurry. You focus on food safety, which is very good in the US. But the EU also regulates heavily food quality and sustainability, and it usually shows IMO.

An odd exception to that trend is dairy products (thanks to the hard work of various US Dairy Councils). Ice Cream, sold as "Ice Cream" in the United States, is vastly superior to most anything you'll find in the rest of the world. 10% milk fat (more exactly 1.6 lb per pre-mixed gallon, but that's simply a bizarre way of phrasing it), no more than half air by volume. 6-10% other dairy solids (lactose, whey). Compare…

Yeah, the US FDA allows artificial growth hormones in dairy so let's drop this comical charade that US dairy is good.
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