Australia's self-regulating pesticide monitoring regime found far fewer violations than the government study

Pesticide tests that Australia relies on to detect chemicals in fresh fruit and vegetables sold domestically have consistently detected significantly fewer violations than a study government in 2013.

Unpublished results of a 2013 pilot study for a National Product Surveillance System (NPMS) by the Federal Department of Agriculture were disclosed under freedom of information laws.

The study was shelved by the former coalition government despite some disturbing findings.

.pageElements.RichLinkBlockElement" class="dcr-11ra563"/>

Testing on strawberries revealed samples containing up to 90 times the maximum residue limit (MRL) set for the dimethoate, while one apricot and nine peach samples contained levels of fenthion, a pesticide now ret ire, which were "unacceptable in the short or long term". food risk perspective".

The study also examined the adequacy of the self-regulatory system operated by fruit and vegetable wholesalers, known as FreshTest.

The federal government conducts a national residue survey that checks for pesticides in exported meat and some fruit, but oversight of food sold in Australia is left to industry .

Under FreshTest, growers are tested once a year as part of their food certification, they know when they will be tested and provide the sample to FreshTest.

Sign up to Guardian Australia's free morning and afternoon newsletters for your daily news digest

In contrast, the department's 2013 pilot project for strawberries, peaches and apricots involved randomly buying produce from growers at wholesale markets in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Adelaide, without notice.

< p class="dcr-h26idz">The department found significantly more MRL violations than FreshTest over the same period.

The department also detected agricultural chemicals that were not found at all by FreshTest.

In the peaches and apricots survey, FreshTest found one sample above the MRL for dimethoate out of eight detections of this chemical. The departmental investigation found four samples above the MRL out of five detections.

In the case of fenthion, which has now been withdrawn from use in Australia, FreshTest detected 32 cases and no violations. The department found 66 detections and 12 violations.

The FreshTest investigation did not detect any samples containing thiabendazole. The department's investigation found three, all over the limit.

The documents note that the discrepancies are not surprising, given the different methods of sampling. FreshTest notifies growers when they will be tested, allowing them to potentially reduce their pesticide use and meet withdrawal times.

When it comes to apricots, the department wrote: "There were clearly important differences, the most striking being dithiocarbamates which are detected at a high rate in the NPMS survey, but not at all in the Farm-Fresh survey. This difference is highly significant The other differences are much smaller."

Gail Woods, managing director of Fresh Markets Australia, which runs FreshTest, said the information in the NPMS relates to the processes over ten years ago.

"FreshTest® is an independent commercial fee-based service offered by Fresh Markets Australia (FMA) to provide chemical residue testing and microbials to industry," she said. a d declared.

"FreshTest® only uses NATA (National Authority Testing Australia) accredited laboratories of which there are a number in Australia offering residue testing.