cross-posted at annoyedomnivore.wordpress.com
The two biggest producers of apples in the world are the U.S. and China. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ranked apple production per country in 2011, which showed China producing close to 36 million tons of apples, and the U.S. producing a little over 4 million tons. Currently, China exports the bulk of its apples to Russia, while America’s biggest customer is Mexico. Given these market shares, it’s difficult to understand the latest brouhaha over the decision of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to ban the import of apples treated with diphenylamine, or DPA. EFSA banned DPA in Europe in 2012, and this year they plan to implement restrictions on how many parts per million of DPA can appear on each apple, designated at 0.1.
The basic facts concerning the safety of DPA are as follows. Obviously, apples are harvested once a year, and so need to be stored throughout the year. Coating the apples with DPA prevents the skins from developing brown or black patches known as “storage scald.” Eighty percent of American apples, as determined by the USDA, have DPA on them, with the average concentration of 0.43 parts per million. The World Health Organization and the EPA have repeatedly concluded that DPA use “poses no unacceptable risk to people or the environment.” The problem, according to the EFSA, is the possible presence on DPA treated apples of nitrosamines, which are potent carcinogens that cause cancer in laboratory animals. The nitrosamines can be generated if the stored or processed apples come into contact with nitrogen, the chief component of air.
The EPA did a review of DPA in 1998 (rules dictate testing should be done every 15 years), and did find a small quantity of nitrosamines on apples. The EFSA wanted more information on what happens when DPA breaks down, and the apple industry responded with a study that “detected three unknown chemicals on DPA treated apples that were greater than 50 parts per billion, but couldn’t determine if these chemicals were nitrosamines.” Given that no more information was available, the EFSA reacted by stating that a conclusion that DPA is not harmful is “based on incomplete and inadequate safety data compiled by the produce industry.”
Industry data informs that U.S. consumers use about 42.5 lbs of apple products per person per year. Given the ubiquity of apple consumption, Ken Cook of the Environmental Working Group (EWG), sent a letter to Steven Bradbury, head of EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs. In this letter, Cook implored the agency to “demand that the pesticide’s manufacturers collect and disclose rigorous data that can determine whether nitrosamines or other potentially toxic chemicals form when raw fruits are coated with DPA and stored over long periods or are processed into juices or sauces.” The letter concluded that, “The American public deserves the same level of protection as Europeans from pesticide risks. We urge EPA to halt the use of DPA on U.S. fruit until a rigorous analysis by EPA of the chemical can prove it poses a reasonable certainty of no harm to consumers.”
Again, the EFSA, while acting in the capacity of food safety monitor for Europe, has alerted the rest of the world concerning a potential threat to our health. Senior Scientist of EWG, Sonya Lunder, says, “Given how often people are eating apples, this is a practice that is not safe…Right now, there’s not data available to prove that DPA is safe. The European approach of getting the product off the market until it’s proven that it’s safe seems like a reasonable approach to us.”
Considering, again, that American exports few of its apples to European countries, I’m not sure why there’s any push back at all on Europe’s continued ban of DPA. Moreover, in 2007, Edna Pesis, a postharvest physiologist at the Israeli government’s Volcani Center, and several of her colleagues , came up with a cheap and easy way to store apples with little scald development. Their method involved a low oxygen environment for one week before putting them in regular cold storage. What’s the problem?
Eat Organic.
Recipe of the Week
Grilled Lamb Burgers
This is an easy recipe that takes very little time and the patties can be eaten throughout the week as sandwiches with pita, greens and a yogurt, cucumber garlic sauce.
2 lbs ground lamb
2 Tbls. ground cumin
2 Tbls. ground coriander
2 tsps. salt
Mix everything together and form into whatever size patty you want. I made 9 out of the two pounds. Grill for about 3 minutes on one side and 2 minutes after turning.
Garlic, Yogurt, Cucumber Sauce
2 cups yogurt (I use non-fat and it’s just fine)
1 small cucumber, diced
6 cloves garlic, or less or more as your taste dictates, minced.
Mix everything together.