In food production, pesticides are often used, which are supposed to promote a better harvest and prevent damage caused by weeds, fungi and pests. Regulations are supposed to protect consumers from consuming these substances, but despite this, 22 children are now selected after consuming contaminated food.
Recently, sad news came from India. But in that country, 22 children had died after eating school meals. In India, it is estimated that about 120 million children are malnourished, but efforts have been made to counteract this with a food campaign called the "India Mid-Day Meal program". It is intended to ensure that children across the country receive at least one hot meal a day in the country's schools.
The diet plan has long roots, but it began in 1925. In general, the project has been a great pleasure, but in many cases it is the only hot meal of the day and is even the only thing they are allowed to eat every day. The quality of the food, however, varies from region to region. In the poorer parts of the country, the food and living conditions around the food are often lacking. Hygiene is often lacking and storage conditions are poor, which causes insects to make their home in the food supply. There is little or no control by the government over the food on offer. After all, there have been serious cases of food poisoning in the country's schools, which have most often been attributed to uncleanliness.
Contaminated frying oil
There are now 22 children in the selection after eating a meal at a school in Bihar province and 28 children are seriously ill. The meal, which consisted of rice, potatoes and soybeans, is believed to contain monocrotophos insecticides, which are generally dangerous to humans and especially children and can cause serious illness or even death, even if consumed in small amounts. An investigation into the incident has revealed that the poison entered the food with frying oil, which was used for cooking. The oil had been stored in bottles that previously contained insecticides.
Pesticides such as this particular insecticide are substances used in the cultivation and storage of foods such as fruits, vegetables and cereals, to reduce or prevent damage caused by weeds, fungi and pests. Pesticides are usually divided into four categories according to their use, ie. insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and stimulants (control plant growth). Certain rules apply to the use of pesticides during the growing season, eg how long it takes from use until harvest. In addition, certain rules apply to which pesticide residues (ie residues of pesticides or their metabolites, degradation or imaging substances) may be measured in different foods and in what quantities. Proper use of pesticides in the production and storage of food should ensure that little or no residue is found in ready-to-eat foods.
Matís screens for pesticides
In Iceland, we comply with EU regulations on the maximum permitted residues in food. Strict rules also apply to the use of such substances and many substances that were previously used are now banned, including the substance monocrotophos, which caused the illness and death of Indian children. Here in Iceland, fruit and vegetables are screened for pesticides, Matís takes care of that for the Icelandic Food Administration (MAST), which is an official supervisory body. Today, Matís scans for 63 pesticides in domestic and imported fruit and vegetables, if pesticides are detected above the permitted maximum, a certain process is initiated, which always leads to increased control and can lead to recall.
At the moment, a project is underway at Matís called "Safe Foods" which aims to build up our equipment to be able to increase research and follow-up with foods that are in production and sale in this country. But one of Matís' statutory roles is to improve food security in Iceland, which is the basis of all food production. Food quantity and food security are useless if the food to be consumed is not safe.
Let's reduce the risk - clean the fruit
Despite the fact that there are few examples of dangerous food additives on the market in Iceland, everyone should dedicate themselves to cleaning fruit and vegetables well before use, in addition to which it can be good to rinse well with dry products such as rice. In this way, we reduce the likelihood of consuming unhealthy additives, which can be avoided completely late as they also ensure that we get a fresh product that grows fast enough to meet demand.