Methyl Iodide Approved For Use In California
California regulators approved a pesticide Wednesday for use by fruit and vegetable growers despite heavy opposition from environmental and farmworker groups that cited its links to cancer.
The state Department of Pesticide Regulation will register methyl iodide as a substitute for the pesticide methyl bromide, which is being phased out by international treaty because it depletes the Earth's protective ozone layer.
California's $1.6 billion strawberry industry will likely provide the biggest market for the fumigant, followed by the flower industry, which is concentrated in Ventura and San Diego counties.
The department tentatively approved use of methyl iodide in April, even though it is included on California's official list of cancer-causing chemicals.
Need those blemish free fruits so the stores can charge premium prices. Cancer? that is the consumer's problem - I guess. So hopefully the consumer will act.
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