The truth behind pesticides
Lately it’s feeling like spring, and tasting like it, if you’ve had a chance to sample local fruits like strawberries. But According to the Environmental Working Group, strawberries are in the top spot for pesticide exposure this year beating apples that were in the top spot for the past 5 years.
While some may feel that pesticides are overused or harmful to consume, what they may not know is, there are guidelines that farmers must follow and they wouldn’t use them unless absolutely necessary.
47 ABC spoke with Jinny Rosenkranz, who works in the horticulture department at the University of Maryland Extension and she says, “Farmers are not going to be wasting money on something that they don’t need to waste money on.”
Rosenkranz says in most commercial gardens and farms, farmers will only spray pesticides if they feel their crops are at risk, such a large bug infestation. And when it is sprayed, farmers must wait days before picking and selling them.
Rosenkranz tells 47 ABC, “There’s a way that you can look at the label and read if you spray it how many days after you spray can you safely pick that fruit and they are not allowed to pick that fruit any time earlier than that.”
Certain pesticides have been linked with a host of health effects, including cancer, neurological problems, and fertility complications. Local farmer Charles Wright of Wright’s Farms takes pesticides very seriously.
Wright tells 47 ABC, “In today’s world the risk of spraying something, applying a pesticide, and then trying to push it to market is too great. I feed my family, my kids, my nephews are from 4 to 14, and all the customers here they’re just like our family and its all about safety.”
Wright says they never spray during picking season, only before, to ensure all the fruit is in good condition and ready to be plucked. An example of the kind of direct communication Rosenkranz says is an advantage of buying local.
Rosenkranz tells 47 ABC, “You can talk to the farmer and say I love these strawberries, they look so good, what do you spray on them, I’m concerned about pesticides and they’ll tell you, they’ll be honest with what they use because they want to keep you as a customer, but they’re not going to lie to you either.”
Rosenkranz added that anytime you purchase fresh fruit, it is very important to wash it before you eat it. Although it is important to know that this doesn’t completely protect you from pesticides, because some can actually sink into the fruit.
