The following material is translated from the French magazine "60
millions de consommateurs", April 1999, pp 30-31.

============begin translated material==============

Patulin in Apple Juice
----------------------

Patulin, a mold that develops on apples during post-harvest storage,
is suspected to be carcinogenic. Among 7 organic apple juices, we
found patulin in 3 products, in smaller amounts than the maximal
allowed content allowed by regulations. No trace has been detected in
conventional juices.

Dioxins in Milk
---------------

Dioxins, by-products of industrial activity, are scattered in the
environment, in particular by household garbage incinerators. They are
known to be carcinogenic for humans, and can also decrease the immune
system's defenses, induce troubles in the nervous system or upset
hormonal mechanisms. Both organic and conventional milks contain
between 0.34 and 0.73 picograms per gram of fat (pg per g of fat), that
is, about 0.46 pg per g of fat [translator's note: I don't know how
they obtained the figure 0.46; I think it is the average over all
analyzed milks]. These amounts are lower than the one recommended by
experts of the European Council (1 pg per gram of fat), except for
Candia Grand Lait (1.06 pg per grams of fat) [translator's note:
"lait" is the French word for "milk"; Candia Grand Lait is a brand of
non-organic milk].

Nitrates in Salads
------------------

Soils naturally contain nitrates. The use of organic or chemical
fertilizers notably increase their concentration. Nitrosamines, that
result from the decomposition of nitrates, appeared to be carcinogenic
under experimental conditions. The ten organic lettuces we analyzed
contained 1628 milligrams of nitrates per kilo (between 347 mg/kg and
3492 mg/kg) on average. The average content in the ten conventional
lettuces is 1930 mg/kg (between 1176 mg/kg and 2657 mg/kg). Concerning
Webb lettuce, the average measured content is 2503 mg/kg for
organic salads (between 348 mg/kg and 3424 mg/kg) and 2085 mg/kg
for conventional ones (between 254 mg/kg and 3160 mg/kg). The average
is 2004 mg/kg for the twenty organic salads, and 2045 mg/kg for the
twenty conventional ones.

Our Conclusions
---------------

No pesticide residue has been found in fruit juices or in milk,
organic or not. In the family of grain products, traces have been
detected in 5 conventional foods out of 12 and in 9 organic foods out
of 35, in very small amounts in each case. Thus, one cannot conclude
that organic products are superior. Differences of nitrate content between
organic and non-organic salads are not significant. That dioxins were
present in comparable amounts in the 8 milks we studied, organic
and non-organic (with the exception of a conventional milk which
exceeds the recommended level), forbids us to conclude that
organic milks have a higher sanitary quality. Regarding patulin, it is
a disturbing fact that we have found it only in organic juices.

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--Jean-Louis Tu <[log in to unmask]>