"Pesticide Levels on Food Unknown Due To Poor Government Testing"

"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not perform enough pesticide residue tests — on either imported or domestic foods – to say whether the American food supply is safe, according to federal auditors.

The Government Accountability Office report, which was released Thursday, said FDA is testing less than one-tenth of 1 percent of all imported fruits and vegetables and less than 1 percent of domestic fruits and vegetables. Federal auditors said the agency’s pesticide testing program is not “statistically valid,” making it impossible for it to meet one of its mandates, which is to “determine the national incidence and level of pesticide residues in the foods it regulates.”

The GAO, an investigative arm of Congress, also raised concerns about both the FDA’s and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s decision not to test for many commonly-used pesticides for which the federal government has set strict residue limits. Auditors were critical of FDA and the USDA for failing to disclose this limitation in their annual reports."

Kimberly Kindy reports for the Washington Post November 7, 2014.

SEE ALSO:

"FDA, USDA Not Testing Foods for Most Widely Used Farm Pesticide" (Washington Examiner)

"FDA and USDA Should Strengthen Pesticide Residue Monitoring Programs and Further Disclose Monitoring Limitation" (GAO)