...In a letter Sarah Eglin the Series Producer for ‘Countryfile’ at BBC Birmingham has stated that the focus of media reporting has been on Krebs' comments not Countryfile's research and adds: "We never attempted to say that our test was the be-all-and-end-all of scientific testing on this issue; of course it isn’t. It was, and was presented as such, a random test comparing three carrots sold to consumers as organic, foreign organic and conventionally grown. "In order to see exactly how Countryfile promoted its research to the media in the run up to the broadcast we have asked to see a copy of the press release that was issued. To date we have received no reply to this request.It is, however, possible to gain a pretty good idea of the content of the press release from the BBC's own pre-preogramme news coverage. On the BBC website, a substantial part of its report focuses on the research - see below. It also quotes Nigel Gillis of the Eclipse Scientific Group -- the company that carried out the research -- saying that this research disproves the public perception of conventional carrots as being significantly pesticide contaminated: "We've shown with this test that that's not the case."To repeat, the test involved just *one* conventionally grown carrot. The Gillis statement, which we feel it is likely Countryfile included in its press release, is clearly nonsense. All that was shown, if all other aspects of the testing were satisfactory, was that one conventionally grown carrot was not significantly chemically contaminated! Countryfile has clearly used the test result, meaningless as it is, to bring Sir John's views on organic food - described by the Irish Food Safety Authority Chief Executive as "extreme" - into greater prominence.
...Independent tests
http://news6.thdo.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health/newsid%5F906000/906530.stmIndependent scientific tests, commissioned by the BBC, found that conventionally grown carrots were free of pesticides. Scientists at the Eclipse Scientific Group laboratory in Cambridgeshire extensively tested carrots that they had bought anonymously from British supermarkets.Three types were examined for pesticide and chemical residues. The carrots tested were: an organic British carrot, an organic carrot from abroad and a conventionally grown carrot.The tests, for more than 40 different pesticide residues known to be associated with carrot production, were negative for all three. Nigel Gillis of the Eclipse Scientific Group said: "I think the public will be very surprised."Their perception of organic carrots is that they have no pesticides and conventional carrots are riddled with them. "We've shown with this test that that's not the case."
Sir John added: [etc]