US: Some facts about carbendazim
Despite being banned in the US for use on citrus fruits the ruling has in fact been quite a recent one. Up until 2008, when new replacement products were made available, Florida citrus growers were allowed to use carbendazim on their trees to act against black spot.
Although the US now bans use of cabendazim on citrus it does allow the use of thiaphanate methyl on other produce including grain, blueberries, strawberries and nuts. You may ask what that has to do with anything, well it is simple - after application thiaphanate methyl is broken down and becomes something different: carbendazim.
The EU also does not allow the use of the fungicide on its citrus, but again accepts it in other produce types.
It is perhaps also worth bearing in mind that the levels experienced in the US recently are up to 3,000 times less than the amount considered to pose a health risk.
yesterday it emerged that the FDA had cleared imports of orange juice from five countries after tests for carbendazim proved negative.
Source: www.mnn.com; www.foxnews.com
