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On 21 September 2013 published in Jardin
French wines are widely contaminated with pesticides. The average of four types of poison per bottle are tracable. These include substances that are known as carcinogens. According to research from the French Consumers organisation “ Que Choisir “.
The organization made a representative selection of 92 affordable bottles of wine - red, white and rose - from all major wine regions, including Bordeaux and Burgundy. Which were then placed in a laboratory to determine the presence of pesticides.
All 92 bottles were found to contain pesticides. Even two banned substances, toxic bromopropylate and the pesticide carbendazim were found. A Bordeaux wine (Mouton Cadet) was found to contain as much as 14 types of pesticides
"These are shocking findings," says Florence Humbert Que Choisir. 'Cause there was not one bottle without traces of pesticides. And normally pesticide residues disappear in the winemaking process. That means that there is so much poison used, that the poison, even after that winemaking is still traceable. "
No rules, zero control
The French consumer association says its deeply worrying, because regulations almost entirely lacking. For wines exist, in contrast to many foods and beverages, no legal limits on the amount of pesticides that may sit there.
In countries like the U.S., Canada and Japan such regulations exist for a long time, But in Europe it is being studied for years. Because the wine industry opposes against it.
Its not new in 2012 90% of French Wines Contaminated with Heavy Pesticides
Pesticide residues were found in the vast majority of 300 French wines tested, say researchers.
A study of more than 300 French wines has found that only 10% of those tested were clean of any traces of chemicals used during vine treatments.
Pascal Chatonnet and the EXCELL laboratory in Bordeaux tested wines from the 2009 and 2010 vintages of Bordeaux, the Rhone, and the wider Aquitaine region, including appellations such as Madiran and Gaillac.
Wines were tested for 50 different molecules found in a range of vine treatments, such as pesticides and fungicides.
Some wines contained up to nine separate molecules, with 'anti-rot' fungicides the most commonly found. These are often applied late in the growing season.
Even though the individual molecules were below threshold levels of toxicity, there is a worrying lack of research into the accumulation effect, and how the molecules interact with each other.
It is possible that the presence of several molecules combined is more harmful than a higher level of a single molecule.
Do you get headaches after a glass or two of wine? Some blame sulfites, some blame fluoride, some blame non-organic and they might have a point. So you would think scrambling for the nectar of French vines would be a safe haven. Even the French were surprised to find out just the opposite - their overuse of pesticides and fungicides finally caught up with them and could tarnish their national treasure. Keep reading to see how to avoid this problem -- and the hangover.
Scientists led by Dr. Pascal Chatonnet of Excell laboratories in Bordeaux, France tested 300 wines for traces of growing chemicals and found that only 10% were completely chemical free. They tested vintage varieties from 2009 and 2010 grown in three regions, two being the all-but sacred fine wine regions of Bordeaux and the Rhone, and found a lot of fungicides, especially those applied late growing season.
While individual compounds were thought to be below safe levels - the worry is the cumulative and synergistic effects, the molecular interaction, and what happens during fermentation breakdown.
According to Farming News:
The wine industry in France uses a proportionately high volume of chemical products on vines, accounting for 20 percent of all agricultural chemicals for products grown on 3 percent of the agricultural area.
More tragic, International Business Times reports:
Dozens of French grape farmers have been struck by illnesses that have been traced back to the pesticides they used. One farmer named Yannick Chenet died in 2011, seven years after he accidentally inhaled toxic fumes from his spraying machine. Other farmers have suffered Parkinson’s disease and various types of cancer. Studies have shown that farmers and laborers on vineyards in France tend to die from brain cancer at higher rates than the general population, and also are more likely to develop dementia
A previous study from European Pesticide Action Network (PAN) found even more contamination from multiple EU countries with up to 24 chemicals in the wines (up to 10 in one bottle), classified as "carcinogenic, mutagenic, reprotoxic or endocrine disrupting".
This must be an unfortunate black eye for the world's Wine Country for another reason as wine connoisseurs can tell you - everything affects the taste of wine - everything. Even a hint of a flower fragrance in the air that season adds nuance. If getting a piece of cork in the bottle can ruin it, imagine what heavy pesticide dousing can do to the flavor when it's in the crushed grapes themselves. Health and quality are more important than taste, but imagine what can happen to the wine industry if this isn't ameliorated.
Excell laboratories organized a conference to talk about "new perspectives" in growing. In January, the EU called for changes in pesticide use to protect declining bee colonies. France's government plans to halve the amount of pesticides by 2018 but expect mega opposition from the ag industry.
There is no list of brands to look for and no definite date for the positive changes - so we can't really be sure of French wines made in the last few years or so.
French wines are widely contaminated with pesticides. The average of four types of poison per bottle are tracable. These include substances that are known as carcinogens. According to research from the French Consumers organisation “ Que Choisir “.
The organization made a representative selection of 92 affordable bottles of wine - red, white and rose - from all major wine regions, including Bordeaux and Burgundy. Which were then placed in a laboratory to determine the presence of pesticides.
All 92 bottles were found to contain pesticides. Even two banned substances, toxic bromopropylate and the pesticide carbendazim were found. A Bordeaux wine (Mouton Cadet) was found to contain as much as 14 types of pesticides
"These are shocking findings," says Florence Humbert Que Choisir. 'Cause there was not one bottle without traces of pesticides. And normally pesticide residues disappear in the winemaking process. That means that there is so much poison used, that the poison, even after that winemaking is still traceable. "
No rules, zero control
The French consumer association says its deeply worrying, because regulations almost entirely lacking. For wines exist, in contrast to many foods and beverages, no legal limits on the amount of pesticides that may sit there.
In countries like the U.S., Canada and Japan such regulations exist for a long time, But in Europe it is being studied for years. Because the wine industry opposes against it.
Its not new in 2012 90% of French Wines Contaminated with Heavy Pesticides
Pesticide residues were found in the vast majority of 300 French wines tested, say researchers.
A study of more than 300 French wines has found that only 10% of those tested were clean of any traces of chemicals used during vine treatments.
Pascal Chatonnet and the EXCELL laboratory in Bordeaux tested wines from the 2009 and 2010 vintages of Bordeaux, the Rhone, and the wider Aquitaine region, including appellations such as Madiran and Gaillac.
Wines were tested for 50 different molecules found in a range of vine treatments, such as pesticides and fungicides.
Some wines contained up to nine separate molecules, with 'anti-rot' fungicides the most commonly found. These are often applied late in the growing season.
Even though the individual molecules were below threshold levels of toxicity, there is a worrying lack of research into the accumulation effect, and how the molecules interact with each other.
It is possible that the presence of several molecules combined is more harmful than a higher level of a single molecule.
Do you get headaches after a glass or two of wine? Some blame sulfites, some blame fluoride, some blame non-organic and they might have a point. So you would think scrambling for the nectar of French vines would be a safe haven. Even the French were surprised to find out just the opposite - their overuse of pesticides and fungicides finally caught up with them and could tarnish their national treasure. Keep reading to see how to avoid this problem -- and the hangover.
Scientists led by Dr. Pascal Chatonnet of Excell laboratories in Bordeaux, France tested 300 wines for traces of growing chemicals and found that only 10% were completely chemical free. They tested vintage varieties from 2009 and 2010 grown in three regions, two being the all-but sacred fine wine regions of Bordeaux and the Rhone, and found a lot of fungicides, especially those applied late growing season.
While individual compounds were thought to be below safe levels - the worry is the cumulative and synergistic effects, the molecular interaction, and what happens during fermentation breakdown.
According to Farming News:
The wine industry in France uses a proportionately high volume of chemical products on vines, accounting for 20 percent of all agricultural chemicals for products grown on 3 percent of the agricultural area.
More tragic, International Business Times reports:
Dozens of French grape farmers have been struck by illnesses that have been traced back to the pesticides they used. One farmer named Yannick Chenet died in 2011, seven years after he accidentally inhaled toxic fumes from his spraying machine. Other farmers have suffered Parkinson’s disease and various types of cancer. Studies have shown that farmers and laborers on vineyards in France tend to die from brain cancer at higher rates than the general population, and also are more likely to develop dementia
A previous study from European Pesticide Action Network (PAN) found even more contamination from multiple EU countries with up to 24 chemicals in the wines (up to 10 in one bottle), classified as "carcinogenic, mutagenic, reprotoxic or endocrine disrupting".
This must be an unfortunate black eye for the world's Wine Country for another reason as wine connoisseurs can tell you - everything affects the taste of wine - everything. Even a hint of a flower fragrance in the air that season adds nuance. If getting a piece of cork in the bottle can ruin it, imagine what heavy pesticide dousing can do to the flavor when it's in the crushed grapes themselves. Health and quality are more important than taste, but imagine what can happen to the wine industry if this isn't ameliorated.
Excell laboratories organized a conference to talk about "new perspectives" in growing. In January, the EU called for changes in pesticide use to protect declining bee colonies. France's government plans to halve the amount of pesticides by 2018 but expect mega opposition from the ag industry.
There is no list of brands to look for and no definite date for the positive changes - so we can't really be sure of French wines made in the last few years or so.
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