scholarly journals Telling Apart the Bad from the Good Guys Behind the Spraying Mist

Author(s):  
Albrecht Benzing ◽  
Hans-Peter Piepho ◽  
Waqas Ahmed Malik ◽  
Maria R. Finckh ◽  
Manuel Mittelhammer ◽  
...  

Abstract Residues of pesticides not allowed in organic farming are often found in organic food. A large number of samples are being tested by organic certifiers, but the sampling methods often do not allow to determine if such residues stem from prohibited pesticide use by organic farmers, from mixing organic with conventional products, from short-range spray-drift from neighbour farms, from the ubiquitous presence of such substances due to long-distance drift, or from other sources of contamination. Eight case studies from different crops and countries are used to demonstrate that sampling at different distances from possible sources of short distance drift allows in most cases to differentiate deliberate pesticide application by the organic farmer from drift. Datasets from 67 banana farms in Ecuador, where aerial fungicide spraying leads to a heavy drift problem, were subjected to statistical analysis. A linear discriminant function including four variables was identified for distinguishing under these conditions application from drift, with an accuracy of 93.3%.

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Albrecht Benzing ◽  
Hans-Peter Piepho ◽  
Waqas Ahmed Malik ◽  
Maria R. Finckh ◽  
Manuel Mittelhammer ◽  
...  

AbstractPesticide residues are much lower in organic than in conventional food. The article summarizes the available residue data from the EU and the U.S. organic market. Differences between samples from several sources suggest that organic products are declared conventional, when they have residues—but the origin of the residues is not always investigated. A large number of samples are being tested by organic certifiers, but the sampling methods often do not allow to determine if such residues stem from prohibited pesticide use by organic farmers, from mixing organic with conventional products, from short-range spray-drift from neighbour farms, from the ubiquitous presence of such substances due to long-distance drift, or from other sources of contamination. Eight case studies from different crops and countries are used to demonstrate that sampling at different distances from possible sources of short-distance drift in most cases allows differentiating deliberate pesticide application by the organic farmer from drift. Datasets from 67 banana farms in Ecuador, where aerial fungicide spraying leads to a heavy drift problem, were subjected to statistical analysis. A linear discriminant function including four variables was identified for distinguishing under these conditions application from drift, with an accuracy of 93.3%.


2013 ◽  
Vol 44 (2s) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Balsari ◽  
Paolo Marucco ◽  
Claudio Bozzer ◽  
Mario Tamagnone

During pesticide application spray drift may cause diffuse pollution phenomena in the environment. In the last years the European Union, through the Directive on the sustainable use of pesticides (128/2009 EC), has recommended the adoption of measures enabling to prevent spray drift. Among these measures, the adoption of buffer zones beside the sprayed fields requires to consider different widths for these no spray zones according to the amount of spray drift generated by the spraying equipment used for application. It is therefore necessary to classify the different sprayer models according to drift risk. For what concerns the sprayers used on arboreal crops, in order to make this classification in a simple and quick way as it was already proposed for the field crop sprayers (ISO FDIS 22369-3), a study was started aimed at defining a methodology to assess potential drift produced by the different sprayer models in absence of wind, using ad hoc test benches. On the basis of the positive first experimental data obtained, a first proposal for a new ISO standard methodology was prepared.


2021 ◽  
Vol 288 (1963) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafaela A. Almeida ◽  
Pieter Lemmens ◽  
Luc De Meester ◽  
Kristien I. Brans

Pesticide application is an important stressor to non-target species and can profoundly affect ecosystem functioning. Debates continue on the choice of agricultural practices regarding their environmental impact, and organic farming is considered less detrimental compared to conventional practices. Nevertheless, comparative studies on the impacts of both agricultural approaches on the genetic adaptation of non-target species are lacking. We assessed to what extent organic and conventional agriculture elicit local genetic adaptation of populations of a non-target aquatic species, Daphnia magna . We tested for genetic differences in sensitivity of different D. magna populations ( n = 7), originating from ponds surrounded by conventional and organic agriculture as well as nature reserves, to pesticides used either in conventional (chlorpyrifos) or organic agriculture (deltamethrin and copper sulfate). The results indicate that D. magna populations differentially adapt to local pesticide use. Populations show increased resistance to chlorpyrifos as the percentage of conventional agriculture in the surrounding landscape increases, whereas populations from organic agriculture sites are more resistant to deltamethrin. While organic agriculture is considered less harmful for non-target species than conventional, both types of agriculture shape the evolution of pesticide resistance in non-target species in a specific manner, reflecting the differences in selection pressure.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lili Guo ◽  
Andi Cao ◽  
Minjun Huang ◽  
Houjian Li

Abstract Recently, serious haze pollution has not only threatened the human health and food security, but also seems to have aggravated the unscientific use of pesticides by rice farmers in rural area of China. Using original data on haze pollution across China, combined with rural household survey data collected from 2014 to 2018, we conducted a detailed empirical study on the effects of haze pollution on pesticide use by rice farmers based on the theory of risk aversion. The empirical results revealed that haze pollution with higher levels of PM2.5 positively impacted the use of chemical pesticides in the rice cultivation. More precisely, with 1% increases in PM2.5 concentration, the amount of pesticide application per mu increased by 7.9%, and the average pesticide fee per mu increased by 2.3%, respectively. The results were robust to a series of tests that addressed potential endogeneity concerns, including omitted variable bias, measurement error and reverse causality. We then examined the heterogeneous effects of haze pollution increase on the use of chemical pesticides and found that the effects of haze pollution on the use of chemical pesticides to be weaker for rice farmer with more rice-planting experience, those with smaller cultivated area of rice, however, the effects on the amount of chemical pesticide application per mu to be weaker for those with rice insurance, but the effects on the average chemical pesticide fee per mu to be stronger for those with rice insurance. Our findings provide important policy implications for pesticide risk management in rural areas of developing countries.


Author(s):  
Ignacio De Los Ríos Carmenado ◽  
Hilario Becerril Hernandez ◽  
María Rivera Mendez ◽  
Carmen García Ferrer

Systems and agricultural organizations are facing new challenges in an increasingly complex and competitive environment. Opposing the existence of other food producers that show low profitability in their production systems, there are other models that have differentiated through ecological production being able to reach high profitability in their production systems. Ecological agriculture is seen as an opportunity to supply to those social segments that would rather consume healthy products. This article reviews literature on processes and key management factors for the sustained success of an organization, resulting on a conceptual framework that synthesizes these ideas. Mainly it looks at two international standards: ISO 9004 (2009) and ISO 21500 (2012). This conceptual framework is used to analyze the experience of an organization of organic farmers called Camposeven, which counts with farmers with over 40 years of experience in production, processing, and marketing of conventional and organic crops in the region of Murcia in Spain.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 114-126
Author(s):  
Neeraj Dangi ◽  
Sapna A. Narula

PurposeThis paper explores the contextual relevance of sharing economy for the organic food market in an emerging economy like India.Design/methodology/approachCase study approach was used to collect empirical data from different types of organic food markets.FindingsOrganic food farmers markets compared to online and health food stores tends to facilitate sharing economy more since it helps them to build value, scale and trust. By sharing resources, skills and spaces, organic farmers markets have increased organic food availability, reduced its cost of certification and operation besides managing consumer trust. Subjective influence through social media and offline interaction reduces information asymmetry at zero marginal cost. Organic food producers/retailers can get a competitive advantage by tapping underutilized assets to create value and opportunities besides overcoming their demand and supply constraints.Originality/valueThe research offers a fresh perspective to the organic food sector, particularly in emerging economies like India. It could assist all stakeholders to overcome the current demand and supply challenges faced in organic food markets.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (18) ◽  
pp. 10107
Author(s):  
Christopher Nwadike ◽  
Victoria Ibukun Joshua ◽  
Paulina J. S. Doka ◽  
Rahaf Ajaj ◽  
Ummu Abubakar Hashidu ◽  
...  

Pesticides are known human and environmental toxicants, with an estimated 3 million cases of pesticide poisoning happening every year globally, resulting in more than 250,000 deaths. According to the existing literature, different pesticides groups are readily used among farmers in Nigeria. With recent developments around commercial farming, crop damage from pests, etc., this has led to higher consumption of pesticides among the farming community. The lack of product knowledge and safety awareness among this group further exposes them to the effects of pesticides. The study aims to measure Northern Nigerian farmers’ safety knowledge, awareness, and practices related to pesticide application. A cross-sectional study using an online survey questionnaire was adopted to generate responses from 524 farmers across the north-central and northeastern region of the country. Farmers’ attitudes towards pesticide use were driven by high crop yield, as 35.4% strongly agree that pesticide use is indispensable for high crop yield. The frequent use of empty pesticide containers for other secondary uses on the farm or at home, as confirmed by 30.6% of the participants, also presents safety and health concerns. Farmers’ age (p > 0.038) influenced pesticide containers use for other secondary purposes. In contrast, education attainment (p < 0.001) significantly influenced the use of pesticide containers for other farm or domestic uses. Farmers’ safety behaviours are influenced by socioeconomic factors, including educational level, age, and years of farm practice experience. The study concludes on the need to develop an approach that will help strengthen capacity-building programmes and enhance knowledge base initiatives around the adoption of non-synthetic pesticides.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane S Rohlman ◽  
Jonathan W Davis ◽  
Ahmed Ismail ◽  
Gaafar Abdel Rasoul ◽  
Olfat Hendy ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Adolescents are engaged in agricultural work, including pesticide application, around the world. Adolescent pesticide applicators are more likely to be exposed to pesticides than their adult counterparts because of their application practice and hygiene habits surrounding pesticide use. There is a need for low-cost interventions to reduce pesticide exposure. We evaluated a theoretically-based educational intervention to change perceptions about the risk of pesticide use and hygiene habits during and after pesticide application for adolescent and young adult pesticide applicators in Egypt.Methods: Young adult and adolescent male pesticide applicators were given a one-hour educational intervention to inform them about the risk of pesticide use and how to reduce pesticide exposure. The median age of participants was 18 years old. Changes in perceived susceptibility and effectiveness were measured with a survey pre and post-intervention (n=119) on the same day. The same survey (n=95) was given 8-months post-intervention to identify sustained effects. Observational checklists of pesticide application practice were also completed during application seasons before and after the intervention.Results: There was an increase in the proportion of individuals who viewed pesticides as being a long-term health risk (74.7% pre-intervention to 97.9% post-intervention, McNemar test p<0.001). This change remained significant when surveyed at the 8-month follow-up (90.5%, p<0.001). There was also a sustained improvement regarding participants’ view of proper hygiene practice surrounding pesticide application. Applicators were observed wearing goggles, shoes, and masks more frequently post-intervention.Conclusion: This theoretically-based intervention is an example of a low-cost solution that can improve adolescent and young adult’s practices regarding pesticide application and personal hygiene practices during and after pesticide application. The intervention can be applied in other countries with similar safety culture surrounding pesticide application.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane S Rohlman ◽  
Jonathan W Davis ◽  
Ahmed Ismail ◽  
Gaafar Abdel Rasoul ◽  
Olfat Hendy ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Adolescents are engaged in agricultural work, including pesticide application, around the world. Adolescent pesticide applicators are more likely to be exposed to pesticides than their adult counterparts because of their application practice and hygiene habits surrounding pesticide use. There is a need for low-cost interventions to reduce pesticide exposure. We evaluated a theoretically-based educational intervention to change perceptions about the risk of pesticide use and hygiene habits during and after pesticide application for adolescent and young adult pesticide applicators in Egypt.Methods: Young adult and adolescent pesticide applicators were given an educational intervention to inform them on the risk of pesticide use and how to reduce pesticide exposure. Changes in perceived susceptibility and effectiveness were measured with a survey pre and post intervention. The same survey was given 8-month post intervention to identify sustained effects. Observational checklists of pesticide application practice were also completed during application seasons before and after the intervention.Results: There was an increase in the proportion of individuals who viewed pesticides as being a long-term health risk (74.7% pre-intervention to 97.9% post-intervention, McNemar test p<0.001). This change remained significant when surveyed at the 8-month follow-up (90.5%, p<0.001). There was also a sustained improvement in regards to participant’s view of proper hygiene practice surrounding pesticide application. Applicators where observed wearing googles, shoes, and mask more frequently post intervention.Conclusion: This theoretically-based intervention is an example of a low-cost solution that can improve adolescent and young adult’s practices regarding pesticide application and personal hygiene practice during and after pesticide application. The intervention can be applied in other countries with similar safety culture surrounding pesticide application.


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