The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it is working with U.S. territories, including American Samoa to protect consumers from being harmed by illegal pesticides.
An EPA Progress Report for 2006, says lab results showed residues of illegal pesticides on food crops, indicating that farmers were using pesticides not intended for food crops, or using too much.
The American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency has used its enforcement authorities to stop several farms from selling their pesticide-contaminated produce.
The Agency has warned farmers throughout the territory that they must verify that the pesticides used on vegetables are approved, and are used in proper amounts.
While shipments of produce in the U.S. are subject to inspection to determine if they have unsafe or have illegal pesticide residues, the report says the Pacific Islands' local governments has no trained inspectors.
