YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, July 4 (RIA Novosti) – The management of a state farm in Russia has been fined more than 11 million rubles ($330,000) for using banned hazardous pesticides to grow vegetables that it then labeled as organically grown, the regional Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Thursday.
Police seized over 300 kg of chemicals and pesticides and over 20 kg of genetically modified seeds prohibited in Russia and other countries from the Komsomolets state farm in the Sakhalin Region of Russia’s Far East, the FSB said in a statement.
“It has been established that growth boosters that make it possible to harvest 10-12 crops during one summer in Sakhalin may cause mutations. Smoke pellets used for crop fumigation may cause lung cancer, according to specialists,” the security service said.
The seeds and chemicals were sent to Russia’s agricultural and consumer rights watchdogs for examination, after which they were destroyed.
The farm’s managers were using illegal immigrants to grow the produce, the FSB said. Seventeen Chinese workers were detained at the farm, of whom 14 were violating Russian immigration law.
Updated with new headline, lead, recast throughout.
