Milan, Nov 27 - Europe's leading food risk assessment agency EFSA has identified 13 substances whose use should be cut in growing fruit and vegetables to protect human health, it said in a statement on Thursday.
EFSA, the European Food Safety Authority, is sifting through 300 active substances -- chemicals and micro-organisms -- used in pesticides across the 27-nation bloc to check if their existing maximum residue levels are safe for humans.
EFSA said it was asked by the European Commission to assess safety of 15 active substances. It has concerns in 13 cases, according to scientific opinions published on its website.
The Parma-based agency said it had proposed to lower maximum residue levels where it found safety concerns and also for substances where there were not enough data available to prove the safety of the current levels.
The European Union is reviewing pesticide laws, prompted by growing concern about the effects of chemical use on people.
EFSA said it started coordinating the review of maximum residue levels for pesticides in 2008 and aimed to complete it by the end of 2010. From 2009 it would make annual reports on actual consumer exposure to pesticides.