Stop blaming the farmer: Dispelling the myths of ‘misuse’ and ‘safe’ use of pesticides to protect health and human rights

Figures & data

Figure 1. Hierarchy of control, developed from NIOSH (2015).

Table 1. Examples of the use of the ‘misuse’ concept.

Source	Date	Quote
Imperial Chemical Industries	1983	“[P]oisoning among the general population derive[s] from gross misuse as do the very few reported cases of death in occupational exposure. There is no hazard to operators during the normal recommended uses of the product” (p. 13).” “Occupational exposures do not pose a hazard under normal conditions of use when the label recommendations are followed” (Imperial Chemical Industries PLC, 1983).
The Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade	1998	“[I]ntentional misuse is not in itself an adequate reason to list a chemical in Annex III.” Annex III lists chemicals that have been banned or severely restricted for health or environmental reasons by two or more parties. This statement excludes “intentional misuse” from RC’s notification procedure (Criterion (d) of Annex II; United Nations General Assembly, 1998).
Bayer	1999	Rosenthal reported that in response to the 1999 pesticide disaster in Tauccamarca in Peru, when 24 school children died after drinking milk substitute contaminated with pesticide as part of a school meal, the pesticide manufacturer Bayer claimed that the deaths were caused by “misuse of the product by the village women.” It denied legal responsibility, asserting that the company complied with all legal and technical requirements of Peruvian law” (Rosenthal, 2003, p. 54).
International Association for Suicide Prevention, Workshop on Secure Access to Pesticides (quote of Syngenta’s representative)	2005	Accidental and deliberate misuse of pesticides is a key issue for the crop protection industry. Pointing out that deliberate self-harm diverts attention from the multiple benefits of pesticides to agriculture, Syngenta’s representative reported that the company is involved in education and training, improving medical surveillance and intervention and promoting locked storage of pesticides, while defending farmers ability to access crop protection products (Mishara, 2005, p. 16).
Chemical Review Committee of the Rotterdam Convention	2009	“[E]ven when the chemical is misused in a strict sense, it may not constitute the act of intentional misuse of the chemical by a person, given the prevailing circumstances in a developing country if the person believes that they are using the chemicals in a manner as designed for its use due to its common use in their community, or the person does not have specific knowledge concerning the law or regulation governing the chemical or the use for which the chemical is designed, and therefore he/she is not able to ascertain its legitimate use, or simply believes that common use of a chemical in their community is legitimate use because of illiteracy or lack of understandable means for communicating the legitimate use” (Chemical Review Committee & Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, 2009).
Industry documents and representatives quoted by Sherwood in “Learning from Carchi”	2009	Describing experience in Carchi, Ecuador, Sherwood cited industry and government representatives insisting that they cannot be held responsible for farmers’ misuse of pesticides. He further gave examples of FMC’s campaign focused on “rational and adequate” use of pesticide carbofuran, and of CropLife’s educational program for school kids on the “correct,” safe, and effective and “responsible” use (Sherwood, 2009, pp. 202–203).
Report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food	2017	“Excessive use and misuse of pesticides result in contamination of surrounding soil and water sources, causing loss of biodiversity, destroying beneficial insect populations that act as natural enemies of pests and reducing the nutritional value of food” (Elver, 2017, para. 32, p. 9).
FAO’s position on the use of pesticides to combat fall armyworm	2019	“The inappropriate use of pesticides can result in adverse effects on agricultural production, health, and the environment” (Food and Agriculture Organization, 2017).
FAO, Pest and Pesticide Management section, on Pesticide Risk Reduction	2022	“[I]nappropriate use [of pesticides] can harm farmers, consumers, and the environment. … FAO works toward achieving pesticide risk reduction through a sound lifecycle management approach, including … rational use of pesticides” (Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, 2022).
FAO Stat Analytical Brief 46. Pesticide Use, pesticide trade and pesticide indicators.	2022	“When applied responsibly, pesticides are a key agricultural input that can help to protect seeds and safeguard crops from unwanted plants, insects, bacteria, fungi and rodents” (Food and Agriculture Oganization, 2022).

Table 2. Examples of the ‘safe use’ concept.

Source	Date	Quote
ILO Guide to Health and Hygiene in Agricultural Work	1979	“Despite the difficulty of providing safe working conditions for persons handling pesticides, 30 years of occupational experience have demonstrated that these chemicals can be used safely if elementary safety precautions are observed. … Delay in achieving safe working conditions has occurred mainly because the workforce requiring education and protection is geographically dispersed and technologically uninitiated” (International Labour Organization, 1979, p. 328).
FAO, International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides	1984	The first version of the Code defined the criteria for “safe” handling and use of pesticides (1.5.3) and encouraged “safe” use by providing information and instructions for use (3.4.3), thereby supporting the paradigm of “safe use.”
ILO, Safe Use of Pesticides	1985	“Even though pesticidal chemicals may be extremely hazardous, they can usually be used quite safely if proper precautions are taken in their packaging and transport, and if the agricultural user adopts safe procedures for storage, handling, and application of the product and for the disposal of empty containers. … Worker education is essential in ensuring the safe use of pesticides” International Labour Organization, 1985).
WHO and UNEP, Public Health Impact of Pesticides Used in Agriculture	1990	The document states that if pesticides have been applied to crops correctly, according to good agricultural practices, exposure to hazardous amounts does not happen (p. 67). “Hazards arising during the application of pesticides are mainly due to lack of information, knowledge, and awareness, poor supervision during spraying, absence of proper legislation, its enforcement, and sale on the open market of highly toxic pesticides.” It stressed that “compliance with the available guidelines for the safe use of pesticides would control most of these hazards” (World Health Organization & United Nations Environment Programme, 1990, p. 90).
ILO’s Safety in the Use of Chemicals	1991	“[Pesticides] can be used safely if proper precautions are taken” (International Labour Organization, 1991).
WHO, Safer Access to Pesticides for Suicide Prevention	2006	The document recommends safe storage and farmer education to promote safer pesticide use. When using pesticides, applicators should carefully follow hazard minimization procedures such as reading label instructions, using good application equipment that has been correctly calibrated, and wearing appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to prevent exposure to the pesticides being used. Pesticide use according to instructions and labels creates “safe” conditions for pesticide application (World Health Organization, 2016b).
CropLife, Guidelines for the Safe and Effective Use of Crop Protection Products	2006	“[C]rop protection products can be used safely, provided the label instructions and good application practices are strictly followed” (CropLife International, 2006). “[I]n order to be used safely and effectively, crop protection products must be handled and used in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations” (CropLife International, 2006).
Syngenta	2022	“Using our scientific excellence and application of rigorous safety and regulatory standards, Product Safety ensures Syngenta’s products can be used safely and sustainably with minimal risk” (Syngenta, n.d.).
CropLife International, Stewardship	2022	One of the stewardship activities is the ongoing Safe Use program and ‘responsible use of pesticides’ is suggested as one of main risk mitigation measures (Croplife International, n.d.).

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