Well I grow my own salads and veg strictly organically, Nigel. That requires large inputs of organic matter, in my case largely my home-made compost (I have a couple of tons or more ready to dig in as soon as the weather warms up a bit - I don't spread it in autumn or winter as I have very porous sandy soil prone to leaching in winter rains. I spread thick layers of grass clippings on in the autumn and the compost about now). I've been known to collect horse manure from the surrounding fields to stack for a month or two. As my heaps are out in the open they will be visited by all manner of insects and other invertebrates, birds, amphibians, rabbits, voles and mice, and never a year goes by without grass snakes laying their eggs in there. I love them all, but, with the best will in the world, they poo, wee, die and rot in there and in move the fungi and bacteria. My veg grows healthily, abundantly and tastily, but I wash them before consumption, especially if they're not going to be cooked. In many cases, the washing of veg for commercial sale is strictly unnecessary, but the supermarkets have educated us into thinking that veg must always look perfect and without a speck of dirt in sight. I get much of the veg I end up buying from the local shop where I buy the Guardian. He sells the lamb from his own fields, situated between his house and mine, and he sells fresh Cornish fish and free-range eggs and bacon from less than ten miles away. The carrots and spuds are unwashed (therefore longer-lasting if I don't use them straight away) and don't come in sweaty plastic bags. The reason we don't have to dose chickens heavily in chlorine is that we provide relatively high standards of hygiene during their lives. And I don't want my chicken tainted with chlorine, thank you, any more than I want my poached egg to taste of vinegar. .

Treated or untreated sewage sludge is widely used on arable land. This is an excellent use for what would otherwise constitute a major disposal problem. The sludge provides the major elements need for soil fertility and the organic matter improves soil structure and water retention. There are strict regulations concerning its prior treatment and use and risks to consumers are low, but, even so, knowing all this, washing veg is probably a good idea, I'd say. The fact that you see veg in supermarkets that's been washed is in no way an indicator on how well grown it was. On the other hand, a chlorinated chicken should arouse your suspicions about the way it spent its life.