PAN UK - Pesticides in your food

Pesticide residues in green beans

We have looked at all the governments published residue results between Jan 2000 and December 2005, and summarised what they tell us about the pesticide residues in speciality green beans.

Green beans and speciality green beans have been tested on six occasions since the beginning of 2000. Speciality beans were tested in four of these, in 2004 and 2005. The PRC include as green beans: fine beans; runner beans; flat beans; dwarf beans; green beans, and as speciality green beans: yard long beans; valore green beans; fresh black-eyed green beans; helda flat beans; edamame soy beans; long beans; lubia

. We have chosen to differentiate between ordinary green beans and speciality green beans because the latter are significantly worse for residues than the green beans most commonly eaten in the UK. While average consumption of speciality beans may be low, some ethnic communities may eat significant quantities, and therefore be more vulnerable to high levels of pesticide intake than if we consider only average consumption figures.

The total number of samples that have been tested is 71, which includes no organic samples (each sample is at least 1kg of speciality beans).

Which pesticides turn up on speciality beans?
The five most commonly reported pesticides (with approximate percentages* of non-organic survey samples reported to contain them):

Cypermethrin (35%)
Dithiocarbamates (25%)
Carbendazim (17%)
Omethoate (15%)
Dimethoate (13%

*Not all the individual pesticides were tested for in all the samples, and so the percentages may underestimate their occurrence.

Find out more about the health and environmental effects of these pesticides

There were 24 different pesticides found at least once over the 4 surveys

How frequently do residues occur on speciality beans?
76% (54) of all samples contained measurable residues.

48% (34) of samples had more than one pesticide residue. The highest number of pesticides found in one sample was eight. The average number of pesticides found was 1.8. Taking into account only those samples that do contain residues, the average number of pesticides found was 2.4.

How often are residues greater than legal limits?
An astonishing 45% (32) samples had at least one residue that was above the legal limit. 12 samples had two residues, and four had three residues above the legal limit.

Residues greater than the legal limit reported in speciality beans between June 2004 and December 2005

Report	Speciality bean type2	Country of origin	Pesticide	Residue found, mg/kg	Legal limit (MRL), mg/kg
2004Q3	Green Beans Valore	Kenya	Profenofos	0.2	0.05*
	Green Beans Valore	Kenya	Dithiocarbamates	1.3	1
	Valore Green Beans	Kenya	Chlorpyrifos	0.2	0.05*
	Valore Green Beans	Kenya	Dithiocarbamates	2	1
	Green Beans (Yard)	Dominican Republic	Dicofol	0.05	0.02*
	Green Beans (Yard)	Dominican Republic	Methomyl	0.09	0.05*
	Green Beans Valore	Kenya	Dimethoate	0.3	0.02*
	Green Beans Valore	Kenya	Omethoate	0.08	0.02*
	Green Beans Yard Long	Thailand	Methomyl	0.2	0.05*
	Green Beans Yard Long	Thailand	Triazophos	0.6	0.02*
	Valore	Kenya	Dicofol	0.6	0.02*
			Dimethoate	0.2	0.02*
			Omethoate	0.1	0.02*
	Valore	Kenya	Dimethoate	0.09	0.02*
	Lubi Bean	Cyprus	Cypermethrin	1.1	0.5
	Lubi Bean	Cyprus	Dicofol	0.8	0.02*
	Valore	Unknown	Dimethoate	0.03	0.02*
	Valore	Unknown	Profenofos	0.2	0.05*
	Fresh Black Eyed Beans	Cyprus	Methomyl	0.07	0.05*
	Valore Green Beans	Kenya	Dimethoate	0.05	0.02*
2005Q2	Yard Long Beans	China	Chlorothalonil	0.1	0.01*
	Thai Yard Long Beans	Thailand	Carbendazim	0.2	0.1*
	Yard Long Beans	Thailand	Chlorpyrifos	0.2	0.05*
	Yard Long Beans	Thailand	Methamidophos	1.8	0.5
	Edamame Soy Beans in Pod	China	Carbendazim	0.2	0.1*
	Edamame Soy Beans in Pod	China	Carbendazim	0.2	0.1*
	Lubia (Yard Beans)	Costa Rica	Carbendazim	2.3	0.1*
	Yard Long Beans	Thailand	Carbendazim	0.2	0.1*
	Yard Long Beans	Thailand	Omethoate	0.05	0.02*
	Thai Lubia (Yard Beans)	Thailand	Omethoate	0.09	0.02*
	Yard Long Beans	Thailand	Dicofol	0.04	0.02*
	Yard Long Beans	Bangladesh	Fenvalerate	0.1	0.02*
	Winged Beans	Dominican Republic	Dimethoate	0.2	0.02*
			Fenvalerate	0.4	0.02*
			Omethoate	0.075	0.02*
2005Q3	Thai Yard Long Bean	Thailand	Omethoate	0.1	0.02*
	Long Bean	Thailand	Metalaxyl	0.1	0.05*
	Long Bean	Thailand	Omethoate	0.03	0.02*
	Speciality Bean	Bangladesh	Chlorothalonil	0.5	0.01*
	Speciality Bean	Bangladesh	Endosulfan	0.3	0.05*
	Yard Long Bean	Thailand	Chlorpyrifos	0.1	0.05*
			Dimethoate	0.3	0.02*
			Omethoate	0.2	0.02*
2005Q4	Yard beans	Dominican Republic	Dithiocarbamates	1.3	1
	Yard long beans	Dominican Republic	Carbendazim	0.6	0.1*
	Yard beans	Ghana	Dithiocarbamates	1.4	1
	Long bean	Thailand	Carbendazim	0.4	0.1*
	Long bean	Thailand	Methomyl	0.2	0.05*
	Long bean	Thailand	Chlorpyrifos	1.3	0.05*
			Dimethoate	1.9	0.02*
			Omethoate	0.8	0.02*
	Yard long beans	Bangladesh	Omethoate	0.04	0.02*

*MRL set at limit of detection