Peel Terms of Use

Effective date: [EFFECTIVE DATE]

These terms are an agreement between you and Matthew Jacome ("Peel", "we", "us"), [ADDRESS]. By downloading or using the Peel app you agree to them. If you don't agree, don't use Peel. Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle data.

1. What Peel is

Peel gives information about fresh produce: a score based on published government testing data for pesticide residues, how those residues compare with other countries' limits, nutrition, and related information such as food-safety recalls. Peel is a consumer information tool.

2. Information only: not medical, nutritional or safety advice

• Peel is not medical, dietary, nutritional or food-safety advice. It does not diagnose, treat or prevent any condition. Talk to a qualified professional about your diet or health, especially if you are pregnant, have allergies or have a medical condition.
• A low score does not mean a food is unsafe to eat, and a high score does not mean it is safe. Eating fruits and vegetables is widely recommended whatever their score.
• Always follow the product's label, washing and storage guidance, and any recall notice or public health advice.

3. How to read Peel scores

• Scores are Peel's opinion. Each score applies Peel's published methodology ("How Peel scores", available in the app and at https://peel.cloudytuesdays.com/methodology) to public data. Other methods could reach different results.
• Scores describe produce in general, not your item. They summarize government test samples of a type of produce (for example, all conventional strawberries sampled across the U.S. in the test years shown). They are not tests of the item in your hand, a particular brand, store, farm or harvest.
• The data can be incomplete, dated or wrong. Government testing covers only some produce, in some years, for some pesticides. Some scores rely on tests that are several years old; Peel shows the test years and flags older data. Sources can contain errors, and we can make errors in processing them.
• Limits are legal and trade thresholds, not safety thresholds. A maximum residue level (MRL) or tolerance is the highest level a government allows in food it regulates. A residue above another country's limit, or a pesticide not approved in another country, does not mean the food is unsafe or illegal where you bought it. U.S. residue testing (USDA's Pesticide Data Program) is a monitoring program, and USDA reports that the residues it detects are generally below U.S. EPA tolerances.
• Organic and origin. A PLU code starting with 9 usually indicates organic produce, but it is not proof of organic certification. Origin and organic status come from labels and data we don't control.
• Estimated scores. Scores for mixed products (for example salad mixes) are estimates built from their ingredients, and are labeled "Estimated".
• Scores change. When new data is published or the methodology is updated, scores can change. Each score shows its methodology version.

4. Recalls and other information from government sources

Peel shows some information published by government agencies, such as U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recall records and, in future, U.S. Department of Labor findings on labor practices. This information:

• is reproduced from the agency's records, in the agency's words where possible, with a link to the source;
• is not verified by Peel, and may be incomplete, out of date, or matched to the wrong product;
• is shown beside the score and does not change it.

Always check the official source (for recalls, the FDA notice, using the recall number shown) to confirm whether your product is affected. Absence of a recall in Peel does not mean a product has not been recalled. Country-level labor information describes a country and product type as listed by the government source. It is not a finding about any company, brand or farm.

5. No warranty

Peel is provided "as is" and "as available". To the fullest extent the law allows, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including warranties of accuracy, completeness, timeliness, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. We don't promise that Peel will be available, error-free or free of harmful components.

6. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent the law allows:

• we are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for lost profits or data, arising from your use of Peel or your reliance on its information, including purchasing and eating decisions;
• our total liability for any claim relating to Peel is limited to the greater of the amount you paid us for Peel in the 12 months before the claim, or [USD 50].

Some jurisdictions don't allow some of these limits, so they may not all apply to you.

7. Data sources and attributions

Peel scores are Peel's own analysis. They are not issued, reviewed or endorsed by any government agency or organisation listed below. Limits shown are for information only and are not the official legal texts; always consult the official publications for legal purposes.

• Pesticide residue testing (United States). U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Service, Pesticide Data Program (PDP). Public domain. PDP is a monitoring program. USDA reports that residues it detects are generally below EPA tolerances.
• EU maximum residue levels. Source: EU Pesticides Database, European Commission (DG SANTE), https://food.ec.europa.eu/plants/pesticides/eu-pesticides-database_en. © European Union. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Changes: values were extracted, normalised to mg/kg, matched to other sources and used to compute Peel scores. The database "has no legal value"; the Official Journal of the European Union is authoritative.
• US tolerances. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency tolerances, 40 CFR Part 180, via the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), https://www.ecfr.gov. The eCFR is not an official legal edition of the CFR.
• Canadian maximum residue limits. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada (https://open.canada.ca/en/open-government-licence-canada). Source: Health Canada, Pest Management Regulatory Agency, Pesticide Product Information Database.
• Nutrition. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, [year]. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov. Public domain (CC0 1.0).
• Hazard classification. Harmonised classification under Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008 (CLP), Annex VI, © European Union, https://eur-lex.europa.eu.
• Produce codes. PLU codes are administered by the International Federation for Produce Standards (IFPS). Peel is not affiliated with IFPS.
• Food-safety recalls. [TO CONFIRM, not in LICENSING.md §4] U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Enforcement Reports, via openFDA (https://open.fda.gov). Peel is not affiliated with FDA.

8. Trademarks and no affiliation

Peel is independent. Peel is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Labor, the European Union or European Commission, Health Canada, IFPS, any certification program, or any retailer, grower, brand or company whose name appears in the app. Names of companies and products are used only to identify them, and belong to their owners. Peel does not accept payment from brands or growers to change a score.

"Peel" is an app published by Matthew Jacome.

9. Acceptable use

You may use Peel for your own personal, non-commercial use. You agree not to:

• scrape, crawl or bulk-download Peel's scores, API or content, or use automated means to access Peel other than through the app;
• copy, republish, sell or redistribute Peel's scores, rankings or dataset, or build a competing database from them;
• use Peel scores or the Peel name in advertising, packaging or marketing (for example, "rated Excellent by Peel") without our written permission;
• misrepresent a Peel score as a government finding or a safety determination;
• interfere with, overload or try to gain unauthorized access to our systems, or reverse engineer the app except where the law allows.

The underlying public data remains available from its original publishers under their own licenses. These terms don't restrict your rights to that data obtained from its source.

10. Subscriptions (Peel+)

[PLACEHOLDER: complete before Peel+ launches.] Expected content:

• Peel's core features are free. Peel+ is an optional subscription sold through the Apple App Store or Google Play and billed by them.
• Price, billing period and any free trial are shown before you buy.
• Subscriptions renew automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account is charged for renewal within 24 hours before the period ends.
• Manage or cancel in your App Store or Google Play account settings. Deleting the app does not cancel a subscription.
• Refunds are handled by Apple or Google under their policies.
• Unused free-trial time ends when you buy a subscription (where applicable).

11. Affiliate links

[PLACEHOLDER: complete before affiliate links launch.] Some links to retailers may be affiliate links: if you buy through them, we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. Affiliate relationships never affect scores or which items we recommend. Links are labeled in the app.

12. Changes to Peel and these terms

We may change or stop any part of Peel. We may update these terms; the new version applies from its effective date, and we'll tell you in the app about material changes. Continuing to use Peel means you accept them.

13. App store terms

If you downloaded Peel from the Apple App Store, you also agree to Apple's Licensed Application End User License Agreement, and Apple has no responsibility for Peel or its content. Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these terms and may enforce them. The same applies to Google Play's terms for the Android app.

14. Governing law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of [STATE], USA, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. [DISPUTE RESOLUTION: courts of [COUNTY, STATE], or arbitration with a class action waiver and small-claims carve-out, as counsel advises.] Nothing here limits rights you have under the consumer protection laws of your country or state of residence.

15. Contact

Matthew Jacome, [ADDRESS], [CONTACT EMAIL]. To report an error in a score or in source data, email [CONTACT EMAIL] with the item and what you believe is wrong.