Environmental groups call for legislation to regulate nitrate residues in leafy vegetables

A few days ago, a vegetarian woman fainted and was sent to the hospital due to suspected vegetable nitrate poisoning, which once again aroused public attention to the dietary health crisis of excessive use of nitrogen fertilizers and residual nitrates in leafy vegetables. In response, environmental groups called on government agencies related to agriculture and health to pay attention and set residual standards for nitrates in vegetables as soon as possible.

The Housewives' Union said that many leafy vegetables have residual nitrates due to excessive application of nitrogen fertilizers, and called on the government to legislate as soon as possible. (Photo/Taken from the website of the Women's Alliance)

Xie Wenqi, director of the Taichung branch of the Housewives Alliance Environmental Protection Foundation, said that eating vegetables can promote health, but the health risks of nitrates in leafy vegetables have existed for many years. However, the government has been reluctant to set residual standards for nitrates in vegetables, causing people who eat more vegetables to suffer instead. This deserves the attention of the government's agricultural and health departments.

In order to make more people aware of the health risks posed by nitrates in leafy vegetables, Director Hsieh Wen-chi said that the Taichung branch of the Housewives' Alliance has recently launched a series of courses entitled "A Happy Table Is Yours to Control." From 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. on September 17, the course will discuss "The Invisible Killer in Fruits and Vegetables - Nitrates and Pesticides." Interested people can call (04) 2375-5234 to sign up.

In addition, if you want to know whether the vegetables you often eat contain nitrate residues, the Taipei headquarters of the Housewives Union will also provide free vegetable testing this Friday (14th) morning. Interested people can visit the relevant website http://www.huf.org.tw/event/content/1211 to sign up to participate.