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Bord Glas Chief has no fears about eating conventional vegetables

David Storey on Bord Glas chief executive Michael Maloney's confidence in conventional vegetable production.

The chief executive of Bord Glas, Michael Maloney, recently expressed confidence in conventional vegetable production when he stated that he 'would be 100% confident of eating any vegetables produced on the horticultural units in our quality scheme.'

The boss of the state agency charged with the promotion of vegetable production and consumption said that he believed that there was a lack of knowledge among consumers about pesticides. 'People don't realise that these chemicals are well controlled', he said. 'There is an approved list and growers are only allowed to use chemicals from the list. They can't just use whatever they like.'

According to Michael the emphasis today is to only spray when necessary. 'Growers use pest traps to monitor the levels of pest infestations. With this information they only use a chemical when strictly necessary.'

Michael points out that all chemicals used in horticultural production are rigorously tested for their toxicity, their environmental impact, their reaction with other chemicals and their effectiveness. And that there are maximum levels of chemical residues that are allowed in vegetables. 'Any vegetable producer whose produce exceeds these limits will be penalised by the Department of Agriculture', says Michael.

Most large conventional horticultural producers are signed up to the Bord Glas quality scheme. The major multiples will only buy from vegetable producers in the scheme. 'Our aim is to promote quality produce' says Michael. 'And from a quality point of view we don't draw a distinction between organic and conventional produce.'

Bord Glas promotes a policy amongst growers of an 'integrated crop management system'. This is defined as a 'method of production in which all decisions and actions can be fully justified in terms of impact upon crop, local environs, wider environment, operators and others and the consumer.' This results in a policy of only spraying crops when absolutely necessary. Pest traps are used to monitor the level of pest such as carrot fly or cabbage root fly. These traps reveal the level of pest infestation and spraying will only take place if and when the pest reaches a critical level in the crop. This policy contrasts with a situation in the past where crops were sprayed for pest and diseases as a matter of routine. In the same way the exact nutritional needs of the soil for a particular crop are established before fertiliser is applied.

While he accepts that there is a growing niche market for organic vegetables Michael doesn't think that 100% organic production is a practical goal. He points to the fact that there wouldn't be enough labour for a start and also to the possibility that with an increased supply of organic vegetables, organic producers might find that consumers were no longer willing to pay a premium. He believes that if all vegetable production was organic then the market just wouldn't be supplied. 'Most organic producers are on very small holdings' he says. 'You'd need bigger producers to go organic.'

In the organic versus conventional debate the chief executive of Bord Glas clearly favours the middle ground.....

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