The traditional British roast dinner has been sprayed with over 100 pesticides, according to a Greenpeace report.
The organisation’s analysis of Fera Pesticide Usage Survey data found 102 unique pesticides used across onions, leeks, carrots, parsnips, potatoes, peas, swede, turnips and strawberries – included as a classic British dessert.
Onions and leeks were found to have been treated with the most unique pesticides (43), followed by strawberries (42), carrots and parsnips (40), field potatoes (31), peas (29), swede and turnips (20) and stored potatoes (five).
Seven of the 102 pesticides were already banned in the EU, the group said, having been linked with cancer, endocrine disruption in humans and high risk to the health of bees, birds, mammals and aquatic ecosystems.
The analysis also revealed the number of times the crops were “dosed” with pesticides across a growing season. Each, it found, received multiple applications, with many sprayed dozens of times.
“A Sunday roast and strawberries might feel like one of the most natural and traditionally British meals imaginable, but behind the scenes they’re produced using an astonishing cocktail of pesticides,” said Greenpeace UK campaigner Nina Schrank.
“Our countryside is being drenched in pesticides, with devastating consequences for bees, birds, butterflies, rivers and the soil,” Shrank added. “Fields that once hummed with wildlife are falling silent while agrochemical giants rake in enormous profits and farmers are trapped in a costly cycle of chemical dependency.
“That doesn’t strengthen food security – it makes it more fragile.”
Greenpeace has called on the government to curb pesticide and fertiliser use by 50% by 2030, with a further 40% reduction by 2040, in the wake of its findings.
To help farmers make the transition, it has called for them to receive funding and support, as well as tighter restrictions on pesticide use in public spaces and homes.
It follows a public letter sent to Defra secretary Emma Reynolds, co-signed by Greenpeace along with organisations including Soil Association, Riverford Organic Farmers and others, calling for restrictions on glyphosate use.
“Farmers are also under huge pressure from rising costs, climate shocks and volatile markets but some are already showing there’s another way,” Shrank added. “They’re reducing pesticide use and producing food alongside helping wildlife.
“If the government is serious about restoring nature and ensuring food security, it must properly back farmers and commit to halving pesticide use by 2030.”
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