SPECIAL REPORT: The fight to keep toxic farm chemicals off our plates

[rooster59]

SPECIAL REPORT: The fight to keep toxic farm chemicals off our plates

By PIYAPORN WONGRUANG 
THE SUNDAY NATION

 

Amnart shows a photo of his infected hand at the recent protest against paraquat.

 

Transparency needed for ban on farm chemicals

 

AMNART KETKHAO moved back home from Bangkok six years ago to start a new life as an organic farmer in Phatthalung province in the South only to discover that the area surrounding his 20-rai plot of rice fields and those of his organic farmer neighbours were being heavily sprayed with farm chemicals, including the controversial paraquat that is used by many farmers to help get rid of grass before growing rice.

 

And when water from those fields flowed out and flooded adjacent organic fields including his, last year, Amnart’s right hand became infected and his condition worsened after long and repeated exposure to water. A similar condition developed among many other farmers in Nongbua Lamphu, with the cause diagnosed last year by the Public Health Ministry as exposure to bacteria found in highly contaminated paraquat water sources.

 

The correlation remains unknown but the ministry concluded at a meeting early this year that paraquat was causing negative health effects both to direct users and to those exposed via a contaminated environment.

It took almost five months before 51-year-old Amnart’s hand recovered, and when the government decided not to ban paraquat or the pesticide chlorpyrifos, or to place restrictions on the herbicide glyphosate, he decided to join other farmers travelling to Bangkok to protest.

 

“I hang myself like this to demonstrate that the government, by not banning these three evil chemicals, is handing death to us instead of protecting us,” said Amnart, with a rope around his neck as he camped out in front of the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry to demand the government commit to banning the chemicals.

 

 

History of farm chemicals

 

As a long-time organic farming advocate, Witoon Lianchamroon has seen Thailand being led down the farm-chemicals path. 

A director of BioThai, a think-tank organisation campaigning for sustainable agriculture and food security, Witoon recounts the rapid introduction of the chemicals in the mid-1960s. 

 

Thailand joined with other nations in the “Green Revolution” under which farm technology, including farm chemicals, were introduced for mass cropping. Thai farmers at that time changed their rice-growing style, shifting |from growing a single rice crop |yearly and relying on water to help |get rid of grass, to continuous rice growing with chemicals helping control grass and weeds. 

 

With year-round planting, the rice fields lost their previous fallow period and diseases began to spread – and the |more they spread the more the |pesticides that were sprayed on the rice fields.

 

After rice, chemicals then were introduced in growing other crops on a mass scale, prompting them to also join the spiral.

 

Witoon points to studies documenting the increasing shift to herbicides, with their imports now exceeding that of pesticides by a ratio of 4 to 1. Herbicides are in critically high demand because they are also needed in the highlands, where ploughing is almost impossible, as it would exacerbate soil erosion. 

 

Cornfields in the highlands, for example, are found to rely greatly on herbicides, which are increasingly being used while causing a lot of side-effects downstream.

 

These chemicals are usually imported from global agro firms, and recent years have seen an increasing trend towards business mergers, which result in further centralisation of the farm-chemical industry worldwide by mega-corporations, said Witoon.  When copyrights on the chemicals expired, their production ramped up in major developing countries like China and India. 

 

They were exported to other developing countries like Thailand, where farming remains a critical part of the economy.

 

So far, around 400 farm chemicals have been registered, 200 of which have been imported for use in the country. Paraquat and glyphosate account for around 30 per cent of the total volume of farm chemicals imported in recent years, while chlorpyrifos is among the top pesticides used by Thai farmers, according to BioThai.

 

Farm chemical regulation 

 

These chemicals were required only to be registered before being imported into the country under the now-defunct Toxic Substance Act.

The system to regulate and control these chemicals changed with the 1992 introduction of the Hazardous Substance Act, under which |hazardous substances were |classified for different degrees of controls.

 

The first two groups of chemicals, classified as type one and type two, are normally not hazardous and require only notification on their import. The third group covers chemical substances considered hazardous, and requires that they be registered before being imported.  The last group is chemicals that need to be banned.

 

Banning is done through the Hazardous Substances Committee, comprising 29 members drawn from concerned government agencies as well as experts and several people suspected to have ties with the industry. 

 

They consider proposals from concerned agencies, including the Public Health Ministry, as well as from the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry.

 

“The ban on farm chemicals involves the process where the chemicals are classified in the fourth group under the Act, and to do so it needs to pass the committee’s consideration – and that’s the reason why this committee is powerful,” explained Witoon. “It is a crucial mechanism to determine which chemicals should or should not be banned.” 

 

Regulation and control flaws

 

Since his organisation BioThai earnestly pushed to ban some farm chemicals in 2009, it has learned more about structural problems in the regulation and control of farm chemicals in the country.

 

BioThai at that time noticed that some countries, including the United States, had banned some farm chemicals, but their registration, which normally last six years, was instead renewed here. When they sought information submitted by the companies to back up registration of their chemicals, BioThai was told the documentation was classified and not open to the public.

 

As BioThai began to question the transparency of the process, more and more information about the impact on public health from these chemicals flooded the organisation.

 

During its campaign to ban four farm chemicals, BioThai learned that there had been efforts to change the composition of the Hazardous Substance Committee to recruit more experts. 

 

Some committee were found to be representatives of agro organisations supporting the use of chemicals, and alleged to have close links to farm chemical companies. That prompted the organisation to decide to push for a ban on two chemicals rather than four.

 

But they also realised they needed to address the committee’s structural problems.

 

“As our work became in-depth, it was not only a push for a ban on harmful chemicals any more, it was also about flawed policies and structural problems in regard to the issue that needed to be addressed, and we have since worked on both levels,” said Witoon.

 

Acute toxicity

 

BioThai has joined with some prominent universities to regularly examine residues of farm chemicals in the market and in the environment and to release their findings to the public.

 

The organisation last year sent samples to overseas labs, which found that almost half of the samples of vegetables and fruits had been contaminated by chemicals, with the |rate exceeding the international standard.

 

The results were submitted to the Public Health Ministry, which later held a consultation meeting with a group of experts before resolving to ban the three chemicals – paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos.

 

Witoon argues that about 100 chemicals ought to be banned, but the three were selected because of their acute toxicity and their chronic and hazardous effects on health, especially in regard to causing cancer and mutations.

 

Witoon’s claim has been backed up by the release of recent study results by a group of professors and researchers in the medical and environmental fields from leading universities, which jointly called for banning the chemicals. 

 

The Hazardous Substance Committee in late May, however, rejected a ban for any of the three chemicals, citing insufficient information to justify a ban.

 

Hopes

 

BioThai and their allies responded to the committee’s decision by calling for a government response and for a panel to be set up to review the decision. While they await a government response, the groups and experts continue to push for changes at a policy level.

 

They have drafted a model law to line up surveillance and control of chemicals on the ground and in the market, including related advertisements and trademarks.  The bill would also shift authority to decide a ban on farm chemicals to authorities working in public health, said Witoon.

 

He believes an improvement would follow passage of the draft law, as it would trigger changes from the farmland to the policy creators. Last but not least, he said public awareness needed to reach a new awareness so people could better protect themselves from these harmful chemicals.

 

“This issue needs a lot of awareness to overcome the problems and hindrances that we have, not just among advocates and experts, but also of the general public. 

 

What we need to push together is a joint awareness that these chemicals are harmful to us all. It takes time and it needs patience,” said Witoon.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30349024

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-07-01

[Samui Bodoh]

"...And when water from those fields flowed out and flooded adjacent organic fields including his, last year, Amnart’s right hand became infected and his condition worsened after long and repeated exposure to water. A similar condition developed among many other farmers in Nongbua Lamphu, with the cause diagnosed last year by the Public Health Ministry as exposure to bacteria found in highly contaminated paraquat water sources..."

 

I am not a farmer nor greatly knowledgeable regarding chemicals and their use on farms.

 

However, if city folk in Bangkok were using chemicals for some reason and they were making their neighbours in Thonglor ill, then they would be banned on the spot. And, we all know it.

 

I can't help but think this is yet another case where city people and country people are treated differently.

 

 

Edited June 30, 2018 by Samui Bodoh
Lack of coffee

[Lungstib]

35 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

When they sought information submitted by the companies to back up registration of their chemicals, BioThai was told the documentation was classified and not open to the public.

Something all too common in todays Thailand where suppressing information has been taken to higher levels. Corruption thrives best in dark corners.

[Cadbury]

35 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

".....the ministry concluded at a meeting early this year that paraquat was causing negative health effects both to direct users and to those exposed via a contaminated environment...........The Hazardous Substance Committee in late May, however, rejected a ban for any of the three chemicals, citing insufficient information to justify a ban".

The reason for that conclusion is not hard to work out.

The ministry chiefs and the Hazardous Substance Committee members have received their envelopes from the chemical companies and the those bent doctors supporting the chemical companies have lied through their teeth regarding the harmlessness of these toxic poisons. 

A bit difficult now for the doctors to admit they lied and for HSC and the ministry to admit they made the wrong decision. They would then have to return their envelopes while losing an enormous amount of face. That is not an option for them.

Money wins again within the corrupt world of Thai politics.

[Jeremy50]

Same old story. Bans rejected because too much money is at stake. Always take the easy way that will pad out your bank balance , regardless of the many thousands of people that are suffering because of your wanton avarice. Ever wondered about the very high cancer rate in Thailand, and those huge crowds that are always waiting outside public hospitals?

[kannot]

most of the problem is overuse and education i spot treat weeds with paraquat, the farmers spray entire fields with the stuff.................save me the lecture

[kannot]

17 minutes ago, Jeremy50 said:

Same old story. Bans rejected because too much money is at stake. Always take the easy way that will pad out your bank balance , regardless of the many thousands of people that are suffering because of your wanton avarice. Ever wondered about the very high cancer rate in Thailand, and those huge crowds that are always waiting outside public hospitals?

wonder no  longer and it  might not be what u r thinking is the cause

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5575611/

[anon537687643]

Poisoned food of Thailand fields


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[jaltsc]

1 hour ago, Samui Bodoh said:

"...And when water from those fields flowed out and flooded adjacent organic fields including his, last year, Amnart’s right hand became infected and his condition worsened after long and repeated exposure to water. A similar condition developed among many other farmers in Nongbua Lamphu, with the cause diagnosed last year by the Public Health Ministry as exposure to bacteria found in highly contaminated paraquat water sources..."

 

I am not a farmer nor greatly knowledgeable regarding chemicals and their use on farms.

 

However, if city folk in Bangkok were using chemicals for some reason and they were making their neighbours in Thonglor ill, then they would be banned on the spot. And, we all know it.

 

I can't help but think this is yet another case where city people and country people are treated differently.

 

 

Wrong!!! During the rainy season, when there is an increase in the population of mosquitoes, they come in and spray a chemical fog to kill them and try to eradicate their breeding grounds. And...They do it during the busiest time of day, in town, with no warning and total disregard to the fact that this it the time when most people will be affected by the poison. There is no reason that they can't fog after midnight, when the town is empty, other than to show that they might be doing something beneficial. The first time I experienced this, I asked the owner of the cafe if he was worried about the poison. He told me that it only affects the mosquitoes. This perception is reinforced by the fact that the person handling the fogging machine only had an old piece of cloth around his nose and mouth for protection. 

[AntDee]

Well, we can anticipate that the only thing that may motivate them is if a story in a foreign news media reports on it and it affects the Thai export markets. 

 

Otherwise, we can consider the cancer and other risks as we are all eating the stuff... 

[Anak Nakal]

It poor farmer.

Thailand not care about poor farmer.

[canopy]

57 minutes ago, Anak Nakal said:

It poor farmer.

Thailand not care about poor farmer.

 

Like anything cheap and easy poor farmers love the stuff. If you were to tell them they can't poison, burn, or use chemicals anymore they will fight against it. Their opinion is it's their land and they do as they please and they don't care about the environment, health, or what the rich folks think. All you have to do is look around and see them all happily poisoning everything they can. The rich are not touching this with a 10 foot pole. All I see is some minuscule protests by a few organic farmers who are just easily trampled over.

 

[Krataiboy]

All credit to The Nation for this excellent, in-depth expose. Paraquat should have been banned from the Kingdom and the rest of the world years ago.

 

The more one reads what is going into our food, drink, water and the air we breathe, the more one loses faith in the ability of politicians to curb the reckless disregard for public health so cynically demonstrated by the chemical industry, among others.

 

For a healthier, less polluted world the first priority should be to outlaw the egregious lobbying and revolving-door system which ensures Big Business is given a higher priority than people.

Edited July 1, 2018 by Krataiboy

[kannot]

41 minutes ago, Krataiboy said:

All credit to The Nation for this excellent, in-depth expose. Paraquat should have been banned from the Kingdom and the rest of the world years ago.

 

The more one reads what is going into our food, drink, water and the air we breathe, the more one loses faith in the ability of politicians to curb the reckless disregard for public health so cynically demonstrated by the chemical industry, among others.

 

For a healthier, less polluted world the first priority should be to outlaw the egregious lobbying and revolving-door system which ensures Big Business is given a higher priority than people.

id  suggest at least halving the population would do more

[Ombra]

Some time ago, a TV member referred to a 2016 New York Times article about paraquat. The article says that the chemical, which is banned in Britain, is manufactured by the Swiss company Syngenta in Huddersfield, England for export. Paraquat is banned, of course, in Switzerland. The article adds that a growing body of research believes that there is a link between paraquat use and Parkinson's disease.

[CLW]

wonder no  longer and it  might not be what u r thinking is the cause
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5575611/

Well, lung and liver cancer. Guess everybody knows where that comes from...

[473geo]

2 hours ago, canopy said:

Like anything cheap and easy poor farmers love the stuff. If you were to tell them they can't poison, burn, or use chemicals anymore they will fight against it.

Then governments provide accessible and similar priced alternatives, show by example the results are equal regarding crop output and quality.....are farmers experiencing this approach in Thailand?

 

So is it the farmers 'attitude' to blame....I think not.

[Cadbury]

I read in another recent story where:

"farm products inspected at Suvarnabhumi will be stamped "EU-standard certified" and be able to enter countries in the European trading bloc without further checks".

I expect it wont be long before every export location in Thailand has a forged copy of this stamp. The health of EU consumers will suffer when the officials in charge of the stamp start misusing it for financial gain; which they surely will.

Next headline coming up. "Thai farm food products banned from EU because of toxic chemicals".

 

 

[CLW]

Wrong!!! During the rainy season, when there is an increase in the population of mosquitoes, they come in and spray a chemical fog to kill them and try to eradicate their breeding grounds. And...They do it during the busiest time of day, in town, with no warning and total disregard to the fact that this it the time when most people will be affected by the poison. There is no reason that they can't fog after midnight, when the town is empty, other than to show that they might be doing something beneficial. The first time I experienced this, I asked the owner of the cafe if he was worried about the poison. He told me that it only affects the mosquitoes. This perception is reinforced by the fact that the person handling the fogging machine only had an old piece of cloth around his nose and mouth for protection. 

That is mostly pyrethroids. Not chlorpyrifos.

[CLW]

It poor farmer.
Thailand not care about poor farmer.

Yes they are poor because they spend all their money on pesticides and fertiliser.
Might not what you want to hear but it is the truth!

[CLW]

I read in another recent story where:
"farm products inspected at Suvarnabhumi will be stamped "EU-standard certified" and be able to enter countries in the European trading bloc without further checks".
I expect it wont be long before every export location in Thailand has a forged copy of this stamp. The health of EU consumers will suffer when the officials in charge of the stamp start misusing it for financial gain; which they surely will.
Next headline coming up. "Thai farm food products banned from EU because of toxic chemicals".
 
 

I hope it comes like you said.
That will give them a clear warning!
Seemed to have worked with antibiotics in shrimp and lately for the IUU in fishing.

[kannot]

6 minutes ago, CLW said:

Yes they are poor because they spend all their money on pesticides and fertiliser.
Might not what you want to hear but it is the truth!

maybe as they cant find  any staff to do it any other way. Thais too lazy, Burmese not interested any more

[anon4637435435]

im a farmer here. all my neighbours use it. they are all sick and theres a funeral each week with no real explination. This need for these chemicals is purely laziness and grass isnt always the enemy. we cut grass, weeds and everything else and put in on top of everything we grow to keep the ground moist to use less water and it works! grass doesnt grow there after doing so nor the weeds. its purely laziness and typical thai greed nor care for fellow humans and the enviroment.

[473geo]

11 minutes ago, CLW said:

Yes they are poor because they spend all their money on pesticides and fertiliser.
Might not what you want to hear but it is the truth!

And such as rice thrips? - please don't suggest the 'organic' method of removing the infected plant ?

Edited July 1, 2018 by 473geo

[Krataiboy]

1 hour ago, kannot said:

id  suggest at least halving the population would do more

Clearly, a philanthropist.

Edited July 1, 2018 by Krataiboy

[473geo]

4 minutes ago, bsdthai said:

im a farmer here. all my neighbours use it. they are all sick and theres a funeral each week with no real explination. This need for these chemicals is purely laziness and grass isnt always the enemy. we cut grass, weeds and everything else and put in on top of everything we grow to keep the ground moist to use less water and it works! grass doesnt grow there after doing so nor the weeds. its purely laziness and typical thai greed nor care for fellow humans and the enviroment.

One of the suggested methods for assisting controlling rice thrips is to remove all rice straw from the field after harvest.

[kannot]

7 minutes ago, bsdthai said:

week with no real explination

but it  must be the chemicals eh?

[canopy]

2 minutes ago, 473geo said:

Then governments provide accessible and similar priced alternatives, show by example the results are equal regarding crop output and quality.....are farmers experiencing this approach in Thailand?

 

So is it the farmers 'attitude' to blame....I think not.

 

You seem to be a bit out of touch. You can't just lead by example/education and it all magically disappears as farmers have a change of heart, do an about face, and suddenly all at once become good shepherds of the earth harmonizing with nature and doing yoga in their spare time no matter how good it is for health and environment.  Get real. Even so called developed countries had to resort to legal actions to stop farmers from using these poisons.

 

[473geo]

1 minute ago, canopy said:

 

You seem to be a bit out of touch. You can't just lead by example/education and it all magically disappears as farmers have a change of heart, do an about face, and suddenly all at once become good shepherds of the earth harmonizing with nature and doing yoga in their spare time no matter how good it is for health and environment.  Get real. Even so called developed countries had to resort to legal actions to stop farmers from using these poisons.

 

This is Thailand, change is brought about by introducing alternatives, through village meetings is the usual approach and it can be done.

The out of touch comment is just a little ironic, as yes laws may assist, but again this is Thailand, and the having laws approach doesn't quite appear to have the same impact, on wearing helmets for instance!

[twix38]

From cancer report link conclusion....

 

" liver cancers increased in the north, where there is presence of liver fluke, and the south which is absent of liver fluke"

 

No idea then!!

Food in Thailand slowly poisons you and I didnt note any mention/focus on pesticides, so the report excluded imv the biggest culprit.