Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to increase testing of produce entering the UK from the EU for pesticide residues.
The Government currently has no plans to make changes to the current monitoring regime for testing food for pesticide residues. The Government’s priority regarding pesticides is to ensure that they will not harm people or pose unacceptable risks to the environment. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) employs a wide range of monitoring and intelligence-led enforcement activities to ensure that the supply and use of pesticides complies with legal requirements. This includes a robust annual pesticide residue monitoring programme which is representative of the country’s food supply.
All agri-food products imported into the UK under existing and future free trade agreements must comply with our rules on pesticide maximum residue levels (MRLs). The regulations set strict controls on the amounts of pesticide residues that are permitted in food to ensure the safety of consumers. The maximum permitted residue levels are always set below, and usually well below, the level considered to be safe for consumers.