Reports in the national press have revealed 60 per cent of fruit and vegetables sold in Somerfield have been found to contain pesticide residues.
These results are according to findings by Friends of the Earth who placed the supermarket bottom of a league table of nine multiple retailers. Safeway and Asda were both found to have residues on 49 per cent of samples, Sainsbury's and Tesco on 48 per cent, while Morrisons and the Co-op were found to have the lowest levels of pesticide residues.
Friends of the Earth assembled its findings from a study by the Pesticide Safety Directorate. Sandra Bell, pesticide campaigner with the environment group, said: 'There is too much hype from supermarkets about their plans to cut pesticide use and not enough action. Only the Co-op and Marks & Spencer have made a real commitment to getting pesticides out of their food.' Somerfield has insisted that all of its food is safe, and added demand for organics was increasing every year. A spokesman for the store said: 'Pesticides are a reality for supermarkets. The products we sell all comply with UK regulations and are safe. Our focus is on developing improvements through integrated crop management with our growers – this will deliver long-term sustained benefits.'