USDA report: Pesticide data shows US food supply 'one of the safest in the world'

Tom Karst | Packer | February 14, 2018

More than 20% of food sampled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2016 show no detectable pesticides and less than 0.5% of food had pesticide residue levels above Environmental Protection Agency limits.

“Again this year, the (Pesticide Data Program) results shows that the U.S. food supply is one of the safest in the world,” according to “What consumers should know,” a breakdown of the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service 2016 Pesticide Data Program Annual Summary.

Fresh and processed fruit and vegetables accounted for 90.3% of the 10,365 samples collected by the program in 2016, according to the 200-page report. The USDA said 502 of samples (4.8%) were organic.

According to the report, more than 99.5% of the samples had pesticide residues well below levels established by the EPA and 22% had no detectable residue........To Read More....