Cucumber strawberry pesticide residue

When the types and production areas of fruits and vegetables on our table are becoming more and more abundant, the problem of pesticide residues will continue uninterrupted. “Which fruits and vegetables may have more pesticides, which fruits and vegetables contain less pesticides?”, “How can we minimize the amount of pesticides we eat?” has become the topic that many people often say at home.

Fruits and vegetables contain pesticides. Some people use this as a business opportunity to sell fruit and vegetable detoxification machines and pesticide degradation agents. In order to solve the confusion for the people, "Life Times" reporter recently interviewed experts in various fields such as vegetables, fruit cultivation, food safety, pesticide testing, etc., and asked them to analyze them in detail.

Experts remind: soaking, scouring, lighting, scalding can effectively go to the pesticide

More pesticides in cucumber, strawberry and rape

From 2008 to 2009, Greenpeace conducted sampling tests on 17 kinds of vegetables and fruits in many large supermarkets in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The results showed that the top three pesticide residues were: cucumber. Contains 4-13 different pesticide residues; strawberries, containing 1-13; rapeseed, containing 1-12; followed by cowpea, granulated orange, pea, lentils, mustard, small tomatoes and spinach. Although the Ministry of Health responded specifically to this, it pointed out that the pesticide residues in these fruits and vegetables did not exceed the standards set by the state, but in the hearts of ordinary people, some doubts and shadows remained.

"In fact, the problem of pesticide residues in fruits and vegetables is not as serious as we think." Jiang Chao, deputy dean of the College of Food Science, China Agricultural University, and Li Li, a doctoral tutor, all pointed out to the reporter of Life Times that 90% of the market Many fruits and vegetables are in line with national pesticide residue standards.

However, in the cultivation of vegetables and fruits, it is true that for some reasons, some pesticides are slightly more and some are slightly less. Chen Chunxiu, a senior agronomist at the Vegetable Research Center of the Beijing Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, told reporters that carrots, potatoes, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, lettuce and parsley are less used; while cowpeas, onions, leeks, cucumbers, tomatoes, canola and eggplant are used. More pesticides. According to any of the experts in the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety of China Agricultural University, in general, leafy vegetables have more pesticide residues than root vegetables, because their leaves are soft and rich in water, and insects love to eat; roots and stems are difficult to bury under the ground. Insects. Liu Jun, an associate researcher at the Forestry and Fruit Research Institute of the Beijing Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, pointed out that cherries, early peaches and apricots are all fruits with less pesticides. However, due to the origin, variety and other reasons, the pesticide residues of each vegetable and fruit are very different and cannot be generalized.

Experts analyze the secrets of pesticides

“Do you know the regularity of pesticide residues in a leafy vegetable?” He Jiguo said that roots have the most pesticides, followed by stems, then leaves and fruits. There are many secrets that people in the city who are far away from the farmland do not know. Chen Chunxiu and Liu Jun analyzed for us one by one.

1. Cowpea and amaranth pesticides; cucumber and tomato fungicides. Cowpeas prefer long worms and use larger amounts of pesticides when planting. Like onions and leeks, the roots tend to grow pests such as cockroaches, and often thicker pesticides. Some pesticides are more toxic and prone to residue. Cucumbers and tomatoes have a large environmental humidity and are prone to illness. Generally, the dosage is relatively large, especially for fungicides. However, compared with insecticides, fungicides are less harmful to the human body.

2. Chinese cabbage is actually a safe dish. Chinese cabbage is generally grown in autumn. Only some insecticides for controlling aphids and diamondback moths are used in the seedling stage. It is far away from the time of market, that is, the time for everyone to eat vegetables is relatively small, and pesticide residues are less. The same is true for cabbage and lettuce.

3. There are few pesticides in greenhouses. In the greenhouse, pests such as anti-virus nets can be used to control pests, so fewer pesticides are used. Compared with the greenhouse vegetables, it is open-end vegetables, which seems to be more natural, but it is more difficult to control pests and diseases, and the pesticides used will be more than the greenhouse vegetables.

4. It is safest to eat leafy vegetables in winter. Leafy vegetables in winter and spring and autumn are safe because there are few insects and almost no pesticides. However, it is necessary to be careful when eating vegetables in the summer, because at this time not only many insects, but also greenhouse greenhouses have been collected, most of the vegetables sold in the market are open vegetables, pesticide residues are more.

5. Scented dishes can be eaten more. Artemisia stalk, Artemisia scoparia, Coriander and the like have a very strong flavor and are natural insect repellents. There are few insects, and these dishes naturally do not need pesticides.

6. Among wild vegetables, only bracken is the most natural. Wild vegetables do not have any pesticide residues. However, only bracken is a natural wild vegetable that grows in the mountains. Amaranth and amaranth are almost all artificial. Amaranth uses less pesticides, and amaranth is prone to aphids and uses more pesticides.

7. Don't be superstitious about the fruits and vegetables with insect eyes. There are only insect eyes on vegetables and fruits, and there are no insects, indicating that the insects have been killed by pesticides. Moreover, the vegetable application time of the insect eye is closer to the harvest, and the pesticide is less decomposed and the residue is high.

8. There are few fruits and pesticides with short growth cycle. For example, cherries, from germination to fruit ripening for only 2 months, it is impossible to play too many pesticides.

9. There are few fruits and pesticides in the famous producing areas. The climate in Xinjiang is dry, there are fewer pests in fruits and vegetables, and less pesticides are used. There are also apples and pears in Shaanxi and Shanxi, and there are fewer pesticide residues than in the south.

How to reduce the pesticides you eat

He Jiguo believes that although most fruits and vegetables are in line with national standards, the amount of pesticides contained in them is not enough to cause damage to health. However, these substances are ultimately metabolized by liver and kidney. The more they are ingested, the more the burden of liver and kidney is. Heavy, so we still have to minimize the intake of pesticides.

Experiments conducted by the College of Food Science of China Agricultural University show that 15 to 60% of pesticide residues can be removed by soaking the vegetables with tap water for 10 to 60 minutes and then washing them a little. However, He Jiguo reminded that for fruits and vegetables with waxy surfaces such as eggplant, green pepper and fruit, it is best to wash them first. Jiang Microwave said that cutting vegetables into small pieces will cause pesticides to penetrate. The best way is to keep the fruits and vegetables intact and rinse them with running water. It can also be soaked with light salt water or the first or twice of rice water. The former can dissolve the pesticide quickly, while the latter can neutralize the toxicity of the pesticide, but do not soak for too long. In addition, sunlight can cause some pesticides in vegetables to be decomposed and destroyed. It has been determined that when the vegetables are exposed to sunlight for 5 minutes, the residual amount of organochlorine and organic mercury pesticides can be reduced by about 60%.

High temperature heating can also decompose pesticides, such as boiling water or oil. Experiments have shown that some heat-resistant vegetables, such as cauliflower, beans, celery, etc., can be washed with boiling water for a few minutes, which can reduce pesticide residues by 30%. After high-temperature cooking, 90% of pesticides can be removed.

Although peeling vegetables can cause certain nutrient losses, it can reduce pesticide residues. Chen Chunxiu reminded that especially vegetables such as cucumber and eggplant, and most fruits, it is best to peel them. Jiang Microwave said that when eating apples, it is best to eat less around the core, because the gap in the core will cause pesticides to penetrate.

For fruit and vegetable detergents, the director of the Residues Room of the Pesticide Testing Institute of the Ministry of Agriculture does not recommend that you use too much because the benzene ring in its chemical structure is highly toxic, and the residue caused by residues on fruits and vegetables may be more harmful than pesticide residues. Still serious. In recent years, popular pesticide degradation agents, fruit and vegetable detoxification machines, etc., experts believe that they can not play a role in all pesticides. Pesticide degrading agents claim to use bio-enzymes to degrade pesticides into carbon dioxide and water. Single force said that they have compared the effects of some pesticide degrading agents, and their effects are very unstable. Fruit and vegetable detoxification machine claims to be able to use ozone water to eliminate pesticides on the surface of fruits and vegetables, but it is more bactericidal, and it is difficult to destroy the chemical structure of some pesticides. “In fact, the impact of pesticide residues on food safety is not as serious as everyone thinks, so everyone can be careful in life, but there is no need to panic.”