THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The level of pesticide contamination in fruits, vegetables and other consumables in the state has drastically come down of late. This is as per the pesticide residue lab report which has studied the samples from farmers in all the districts in the state. Though the Kerala Agriculture University is yet to release the report for 2017, it is learnt that over 90 per cent of the samples collected from the state and brought from outside it are safe to eat.
The project, ‘Production and Marketing of Safe to Eat Vegetables’ was started in January 2013 by the agriculture department with the help of the Pesticide Residue Research and Analytical Laboratory (PRRAL) at the College of Agriculture, Vellayani.
The samples of vegetables, fruits, spices and condiments were checked for pesticide residue after a surge in the import of these from neighbouring states. So far, the agriculture department has granted Rs 1.75 crore towards the expenses. The PRRAL lab lacks enough equipment to test the samples. The cost of testing each sample is Rs 4,500. “Last year’s two pesticide residue reports (Jan – June and July – Dec) as well as the annual report are yet to see the light of the day. The fruits and vegetable samples were collected from the farmers chosen by the respective additional directors from all the 14 districts and they were found safe to eat with 92-93 per cent being consumable,” said a government official. However, the periodic reports on the pesticide content have been suspended for some time.
As per norms, the PRRAL lab authorities will forward their findings to the director of research at Mannuthy, KAU. After a five-member vetting committee approves it, the report will be released to the media. A section of agriculture department officials feels that the delay by the KAU in releasing the reports will only help the pesticide lobby and risk the health of the consumers. A top agriculture official maintained that the KAU had released the previous reports on time and that the latest quarterly report will be released within a week. It is alleged that there is friction between the agriculture department, which meets the expenses, and the PRRAL lab, which claims the credit for the programme.
