Bright red, sweet and tasty! That is how we want our strawberries. Unfortunately, we can get an additional portion of pesticides with our fruit. That is why the State Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety of Lower Saxony (LAVES) regularly checks strawberries for unwanted pesticide residue.
The results of 2014 show that strawberries have a larger residue of pesticides than other fruit. 62 samples of fresh and frozen strawberries were tested; only three samples were residue-free, two samples of those three included organic strawberries. Up to ten different chemicals were found on the fruit. German strawberries were hardly better than foreign strawberries.
Particularly disconcerting: in twelve samples chlorate was present. These samples came either from abroad or were frozen goods. Since 2008 chlorate is no longer allowed as a pesticide in the EU. Nevertheless, it can be found on our food: it is a by-product of chlorine-containing products, which is used to disinfect, for example drinking water or pipes and wells. A regular intake of chlorate, even small amounts, can inhibit the iodine uptake and thus cause thyroid problems. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) especially warns of the risks for children. Although only seven of the twelve samples exceeded the hard limit of 0.1 mg/kg but when chlorate is concerned: better safe than sorry!