Advancements in Reducing Residues

Cologne, 02.02.07

REWE Group tightens its requirements for its suppliers of fruits and vegetables - No more than 70 per cent of the legal limit values permitted - ArfD limit values binding - Sanctions as severe as permanent delisting

Cologne-based REWE Group aims to further decrease potential residues in the fruits and vegetables it sells. In the future, residues may fundamentally no longer exceed a cap set at 70 per cent of the legal upper limits. The so-called "akute Referenzdosis (ARfD)" - acute reference dosage - also may not be exceeded in fruits and vegetables. This is now the binding standard that the trading company has set for its suppliers. If the limits are exceeded, sanctions as severe as permanent delisting may result. REWE Group is further advancing its quality initiative for this group of products by tightening its requirements for fruit and vegetable suppliers.

It is possible in some combinations of products and residual substances for the reference dosage to be exceeded even though the legal limits are applied. REWE Group solves this problem left as yet unaddressed by lawmakers by requiring its suppliers to maintain the acute reference dosage. The acute reference dosage value was calculated by the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) in co-operation with the World Health Organisation (WHO). The acute reference dosage describes the highest quantity of a substance that a girl weighing 16.15 kg should ingest as a daily maximum.

Caparros: "Commerce Has to Act in Concert"

"By setting these standards, REWE Group is again giving a clear sign that we are deeply committed to permanent reductions in chemical residues in fruits and vegetables. This is why we are actively involved in this issue and hope that other companies follow our initiative", said REWE Group CEO Alain Caparros on Friday, February 2, in Cologne. "Commerce has to act in concert on this matter in order to attain as powerful a position as possible with regard to suppliers and producers in Germany and abroad", said Caparros. Today's measurements for residues may be near the limits of analytic detection, often drawing the comparison with detecting evidence of a sugar cube in Lake Constance. "Yet we still see ourselves as representing the interests of our customers in this area by reducing residual substances to an irrefutable minimum", emphasized the CEO who is also in charge of strategic and international purchasing.

REWE Group rejected a purely quantitative limit on the number of ingredients on the basis of today's standpoint. A potential result of such a limit would be the increased use of substances that are applied too liberally and have unspecified side effects. Moreover, such a limit would also affect those suppliers who consciously apply modern substances that have known effects in rotation to avoid resistance to the substances - an approach reflecting good agricultural practice.

Pioneer Role

As the first food retailer to do so, REWE Group began selling fruits and vegetables nationwide that adhere to the stringent QS standards (www.q-s.info) back in October of last year. Ever since the test seal was rolled out across the board at REWE and Penny, the number of products bearing the seal has continued to expand. The QS quality seal stands for comprehensive quality assurance across all stages - in other words, from production to fruit and vegetable markets, all the way to the food retail store.

Contact

REWE GROUP-Corporate Communications
Tel.: 0221 - 149-1050
E-Mail: presse(at)rewe-group.com

Contact