On the basis of Efsa's analyses, Coldiretti has drawn up a blacklist of foods contaminated by chemical residues, mycotoxins, additives and colorants. The list ranges from Chinese broccoli to Indian basil, through to strawberries and oranges from Egypt.
Topping Coldiretti's blacklist of contaminated foods — those found to contain chemical residues, mycotoxins, additives and colorants — are broccoli from China, considered the least safe product among those examined, with 92 per cent of samples found to be non-compliant.
Second and third place on the list of contaminated foods go to parsley from Vietnam and basil from India, with 70 and 68 per cent of analyses respectively returning positive results for the presence of chemical residues above the legal limits. Close behind are pomegranates from Egypt, chilli peppers from Thailand, mint from Morocco, melons from the Dominican Republic, strawberries from Egypt, peas from Kenya and, in tenth place, oranges from Egypt.
The majority of Chinese broccoli samples contained above-normal concentrations of Acetamiprid (a neonicotinoid insecticide that may affect the human nervous system during development), Chlorfenapyr (a pesticide), Carbendazim (a systemic fungicide banned in Italy as it is considered carcinogenic), Flusilazole (a pesticide) and Pyridaben (an acaricide).
The residues flagged in Vietnamese parsley belong to Chlorpyrifos (a pesticide accused of interfering with children's cognitive development, particularly in boys), Profenofos (an insecticide), Hexaconazole (a fungicide), Phentoate and Flubendiamide (insecticides), while Indian basil contains Carbendazim, a substance banned in Italy as it is considered carcinogenic.
It comes as no surprise, according to Coldiretti, that China should find itself at the top of the contaminated foods ranking, given that the Asian giant also claimed the record in 2015 for the highest number of notifications for non-compliant food products, specifically for contamination by synthetic chemical substances. Out of a total of 2,967 irregularity alerts reported in Europe, 386 concerned Chinese products. In the same year, Beijing quintupled (+379 per cent) its exports to Italy of tomato concentrate, reaching a level equivalent to 10 per cent of national production in fresh tomato equivalent.
Coldiretti explains that in the blacklist of the most contaminated foods "15 per cent of Moroccan mint was found to be non-compliant — Morocco being another country that has been granted concessions by the European Union for the export of oranges, clementines, strawberries, cucumbers, courgettes, garlic, olive oil and table tomatoes, which have brought national producers to their knees. The agreement with Morocco is strongly contested by agricultural producers precisely because in the African country the use of pesticides that are harmful to health and banned in Europe is permitted."
"There is no more time to waste and we must finally make public the commercial flows of raw materials coming from abroad so that consumers too can learn the names of the companies using foreign ingredients," stressed Coldiretti president Roberto Moncalvo, adding that "Italian businesses must be freed from the unfair competition of foreign produce made under conditions of social and environmental dumping, with concrete risks for citizens' food safety."
Product Country
Broccoli China
Parsley Vietnam
Basil India
Pomegranates Egypt
Chilli peppers Thailand
Mint Morocco
Melons/Watermelons Dominican Republic
Strawberries Egypt
Peas Kenya
Oranges Egypt