Texas has reached a settlement with grocery store company Albertsons Safeway LLC to stop the practice of spraying produce labeled “organic” with a synthetic pesticide.
Attorney General Ken Paxton secured the settlement following a state-wide investigation into grocery stores over concerns that grocers were using pesticides without consumer’s knowledge on produce that is labeled USDA organic.
Paxton accused Albertsons Safeway LLC, a parent company of over 10 different grocery store chains, of using ProduceMaxx, a synthetic antimicrobial pesticide, on its organic produce. The pesticide’s active ingredient is hypochlorous acid, which extends shelf life by reducing pathogens and spoilage organisms.
According to U.S. Department of Agriculture guidelines, produce treated with ProduceMaxx can only be certified USDA organic if the amount of chlorine present is below four parts per million or if it undergoes a water rinse before consumption.
ProduceMaxx contains 6,000 parts per million of free chlorine when undiluted.
“Consumers paying premium prices for organic products reasonably expect those items to be free from these types of synthetic chemical treatments,” reads Paxton’s announcement. “Many consumers were unaware that, despite the certified organic label, pesticides had been used.”
Despite denying any wrongdoing, Albertsons Safeway LLC, along with the attorney general’s office, has entered into an agreement “for the sole purpose of compromising disputed claims without the necessity of protracted and expensive litigation.”
Albertsons Safeway LLC now assures that within 90 days it will cease misting any synthetic pesticide on organic produce sold in Texas. It will also update its internal policies and procedures to include the completion of a water rinse on all organic produce after crisping it with ProduceMaxx.
Paxton called the settlement “a huge win for Texans seeking to avoid synthetic pesticides when purchasing organic produce.”
“I commend Albertsons for reversing its course of action and signing this historic agreement to help ensure transparency for Texans by requiring its stores to stop the misting of pesticides on organic produce,” said Paxton. “I will continue to use every tool available to help Make America Healthy Again.”
Paxton also praised Texas-based grocer H-E-B and nationwide chains Whole Foods and Natural Grocers for their practice of not treating organic produce with antimicrobial pesticides, and encouraged Sprouts Farmers Market to follow these companies’ example.
