OTA Disputes Fox Business News Report Touting Safety Of Conventional Produce

The Organic Trade Association (OTA), responding to a Fox Business News report that purportedly said chemically-grown produce is safer, said the only way consumers can minimize dietary exposure to pesticides is to purchase organic products. The OTA cited research by a Harvard assistant professor who has found that pesticide residues detected in the urine of children who eat conventionally produced fruits and vegetables disappear when children eat organic produce. Exposure to pesticides has been linked with higher risk of birth defects, the OTA said, as well as the onset of autism,  neurodevelopment problems in vulnerable fetuses and young children. “Consumers should know that organic foods have the least chemicals applied in their production and the least residues in the final products,” an OTA official said.