85% of European apples contain a ‘cocktail’ of plant protection chemicals

Apples are one of the most commonly consumed fruits in Spain and throughout Europe thanks to their “healthy food” image. However, a report published this week by the Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Europe showed worrying numbers when 80% of apple samples in Spain and an average of 85% in Europe contained many types of toxic chemicals at the same time, also known as “cocktails” of pesticides, according to Euro News.

The expert group conducted the report based on the results of analyzing 59 domestic apple samples purchased from supermarkets and markets in September 2025. Data shows that each apple contains an average of 3 chemicals, with some fruits containing up to 7 chemicals. In 8 countries including Germany, Poland, the Netherlands and Croatia, testing agencies found that 100% of test samples contained multiple drug residues at the same time. Denmark recorded the lowest rate at 20%, followed by Belgium (50%), while Spain, France and Italy all stood at 80%.

Analysis results showed that 64% of apples contained PFAS and 36% contained neurotoxic drugs. Specifically, 61% of samples were contaminated with the potentially carcinogenic fungicide Captan; Nearly 40% contain the endocrine disruptor Fludioxonil. About 20% of the samples contained Acetamiprid – a neurotoxic pesticide that can penetrate directly into the fetus through the placenta. The report emphasized that 93% of contaminated apples violated the European Union’s (EU) children’s food standards, with many samples even exceeding the safety threshold by up to 600 times.

The root cause of this situation stems from the delay of the management agency. For more than 20 years, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has not yet applied the method of assessing the combined effects of many drugs (cocktail effect) even though the law requires it. The fact that officials only assess risks on individual substances creates a huge gap. Currently, 71% of contaminated apples contain active ingredients in the “highly toxic” group that the EU requires to be eliminated. In fact, gardeners can spray apple trees up to 30 times per year.

Faced with this risk, the Hogar sin Tóxicos organization (Spain) advises people to choose to buy local organic apples grown without the use of synthetic chemicals. PAN Europe CEO Martin Dermine criticized the European Commission for considering relaxing safety standards instead of completely banning hazardous chemicals. He affirmed that authorities need to immediately issue stricter regulations to protect public health.