Pesticides
Millions of people rely on EWG's Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce to reduce their exposure to toxic synthetic pesticides used on fruits and vegetables. The alternative is buy organic.
The neurotoxic pesticide chlorpyrifos should be banned for use immediately by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Environmental Working Group wrote in a public comment letter [link to letter] to the agency this week. The EPA should make it illegal for any traces of chlorpyrifos to be present on produce or other foods.
Read MoreThe Environmental Working Group submitted comments to the EPA urging the agency to revoke the proposed interim decision for chlorpyrifos, issued in December 2020, to cancel all chlorpyrifos uses, and revoke all tolerances of the insecticide immedi
Read MoreThe administration of President Joe Biden has a mountain of work to do to reverse the damage done by the Trump administration. It should begin by taking swift action to ban and restrict the toxic pesticides the Trump administration allowed in agriculture and on food.
Read MoreEWG submitted comments to the EPA in opposition to proposed new uses of the neurotoxic insecticide aldicarb on oranges and grapefruit in Texas and Florida.
Read MoreNitrate contamination of drinking water in Wisconsin may cause nearly 300 cases a year of colorectal and other cancers and increase the risk of very premature births, very low birth weight and birth defects, according to a peer-reviewed study by scientists from Clean Wisconsin and the Environmental Working Group.
Read MoreEWG submitted comments to California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and the Developmental and Reproductive Toxicant Identification Committee to recommend the prioritization of four per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS), so
Read MoreThe Trump administration’s assault on science has been a disaster for children, according to a report in February from the Union of Concerned Scientists. Now the election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris offers the possibility of reversing the damage done to children’s health under the Trump administration, with its many rollbacks of public health protections and disregard for the heightened risk toxic chemicals pose to kids.
Read MoreIn defiance of a federal court order, on Tuesday the Environmental Protection Agency extended the use of a weedkiller linked to cancer, pitting farmers who use it on genetically engineered crops against others whose adjacent fields can be devastated by drift of the chemical.
Read MoreEWG News Roundup (8/6): Here’s some news you can use going into the weekend.
Read MoreLegislation introduced today would ban or restrict scores of the most toxic pesticides, introduce health-protective restrictions on pesticide use and registration, and create new safety protections for farmworkers – the most sweeping overhaul of the nation’s pesticide law in nearly 25 years.
Read MoreThis July Fourth weekend, be responsible and respect local public health ordinances and social distancing guidelines. Whether you’re planning to stay at home to grill in your backyard, or heading to your nearest beach or lake for time outdoors, it’s more important than ever to make your health and safety a priority.
Read MoreCalifornia Gov. Gavin Newsom has directed all counties to tighten restrictions on pesticide spraying near homes, to protect children from toxic chemicals drifting from crop fields while they are homebound during the coronavirus pandemic. Newsome’s order signals a new approach to California agriculture regulation, calling for “transitioning away from harmful chemicals.”
Read MoreEWG submits comments opposing the EPA’s decisions to allow continued use of five neonicotinoid insecticides.
Read MoreDuring this time of the coronavirus crisis, the Environmental Working Group stands firmly in defense of food safety for all Americans. From the day EWG was founded, we have advocated for everyone to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. This message has not changed in our nearly three decades of work. We also advocate for keeping the nation’s food supply safe from microbial contamination and toxic pesticides.
Read MoreNearly 70 percent of the fresh produce sold in the U.S. contains residues of potentially harmful chemical pesticides, according to the Environmental Working Group’s 2020 Dirty Dozen™. Yet the dirtiest produce commodity is not a fresh fruit or vegetable but a dried one – raisins.
Read MoreNitrate contamination of drinking water has increased across Minnesota’s farm country, an Environmental Working Group analysis of state data has found.
Read MoreThe landmark Food Quality Protection Act requires the Environmental Protection Agency to protect children’s health by applying an extra margin of safety to legal limits for pesticides in food. But an investigation by EWG, published this week in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, found that the EPA has failed to add the mandated children’s health safety factor to the allowable limits for almost 90 percent of the most common pesticides.
Read MoreFarms in California can no longer buy a neurotoxic pesticide that can damage children’s brains and nervous systems.
As of today, chlorpyrifos is banned for sale in the state that grows most of the nation’s fresh produce. Farmers have until the end of the year to use any remaining stockpiles of the pesticide they have on hand.
Read MoreKellogg's will take steps to phase out the use of the herbicide glyphosate to dry oats and wheat before harvest, eliminating use of the potentially harmful chemical in the main ingredients of many of the company’s breakfast cereals and other foods.
Read MoreThe Environmental Working Group submits comments to the EPA on the registration review for the herbicide metolachlor.
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