Farming body unhappy over ban on paraquat, chlorpyrifos

By The Nation

 

 

A farming confederation has expressed its disappointment with the government's decision to ban the use of chemicals paraquat and chlorpyrifos before having alternatives.

 

The decision to ban made last year was reaffirmed by the National Hazardous Substances Committee at its meeting on April 30 and takes effect from June 1.

 

Safe Farming Confederation Sukan Sangwanna secretary-general said there was currently no alternative to paraquat in terms of effectiveness and worthiness.

 

The price guarantee and increased budget measures that were announced by Industry Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit are not a long-term solution because they only allow farmers to take national budgets to buy more chemical substances and the chemical companies are the ones that get benefits, he said.

 

Moreover, he said, the Public Health Ministry had adjusted a residual substance law in order to import more soybeans and it benefits only a group of soy importers.

 

Residual substance index adjustment is increased so that the US and Brazil can deliver soybeans and the importers will not face any problem.

 

This shows that the ministry and NGOs are lying about their concern for the health of Thai people because if they really did, they would ban glyphosate too. They have not seen the negative effects on the agricultural and export industries, Sukan warned.

 

Even though the Agriculture Ministry said farmers did not collaborate on the chemical substance ban, Sukan emphasised that more than 500,000 households followed pesticide instructions from the Department of Agriculture but the project was ended after a few months since its debut on October 20 because the Agriculture Ministry saw it as a failure.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30387782

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-05-13

 

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Yes they will be...but the public will be happy.

regards worgeordie

 

"Residual substance index adjustment is increased so that the US and Brazil can deliver soybeans and the importers will not face any problem."

Just move the goalposts and everything is OK

Governments starting to do things based on intelligence instead of stupidity. The July31st visa amnesty and now this. First 2 things i have ever been able to appreciate. 

???? What planet are we living on? Government does care? Im impressed!!

"...ban the use of chemicals paraquat and chlorpyrifos before having alternatives."

May I ask what they did before these poisons were introduced to Thailand?

"Hey, a little poison doesn't kill everybody, at least not right away..." Amazing it has taken this long to ban the stuff

16 hours ago, webfact said:

farmers did not collaborate on the chemical substance ban, Sukan emphasised that more than 500,000 households followed pesticide instructions from the Department of Agriculture but the project was ended after a few months since its debut on October 20 because the Agriculture Ministry saw it as a failure.

Bon appetit ...

Thai farmers just want to make profit .

Total ban of everything toxic used in the food industrie is the best thing to do . Alternatives will be found ...

Just as Emdog says ... how did they do the farming before they had access to the toxic substances ...?

It’s about time I just hope it’s true I think THAILAND  only country that uses these chemicals TIT

1 minute ago, TheFishman1 said:

It’s about time I just hope it’s true I think THAILAND  only country that uses these chemicals TIT

I assume you've never tried to grow a crop?

First you get mildew ...... so you have to spray fungicide (or the crop dies).

Then you get insect infestation ....... so you have to spray insecticide (or the crop gets eaten by bugs)

Then you get weeds .... so it's either spend all day crawling around pulling weeds, or spray herbicide.

 

Oddly the chemicals that get banned in the west, are usually the chemicals where the manufacturers licence has run out. But don't worry they have an exclusive licence to produce a 'safer' and far more expensive chemical.

Edited May 14, 20206 yr by BritManToo

49 minutes ago, Emdog said:

May I ask what they did before these poisons were introduced to Thailand?

Hand  removal  by the labour  force that  no longer exists for this  type of work including Burmese, but if  you can find anyone to do weeding by hand let me know, 20 rai. 600 baht a day doesn't  lure them.

18 minutes ago, nobodysfriend said:

Just as Emdog says ... how did they do the farming before they had access to the toxic substances ...?

The population was much smaller, the fields produced much less food and used 100x more people to work the fields.

If farming went back to the 'good old days', 3/4 of the world population would starve to death, and the rest would all be farming labourers.

Edited May 14, 20206 yr by BritManToo

8 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

I assume you've never tried to grow a crop?

First you get mildew ...... so you have to spray fungicide (or the crop dies).

Then you get insect infestation ....... so you have to spray insecticide (or the crop gets eaten by bugs)

Then you get weeds .... so it's either spend all day crawling around pulling weeds, or spray herbicide.

 

Oddly the chemicals that get banned in the west, are usually the chemicals where the manufacturers licence has run out. But don't worry they have an exclusive licence to produce a 'safer' and far more expensive chemical.

Right.. never figured you for a tinfoil hat guy.

 

Fact is in the West they are constantly putting more rules out for a cleaner environment so its natural that older stuff gets banned. Now for instance there is more fish in the Dutch rivers then ever and its cleaner then ever. This has been going on for a long time.

 

The fact that new stuff is more expensive is because its new and development cost still have to be earned back. No conspiracies just moving forward for a better environment. 

 

Corvid must be a blessing to the farmers. Now so much unemployed who can work at farms again. So they cant complain about not enough people. Maybe not enough willing people but then pay more. 

18 hours ago, unamazedloso said:

Governments starting to do things based on intelligence instead of stupidity. The July31st visa amnesty and now this. First 2 things i have ever been able to appreciate. 

???? What planet are we living on? Government does care? Im impressed!!

Don't speak to soon, these may have been blood rushing to the brain!

3 hours ago, nobodysfriend said:

Bon appetit ...

Thai farmers just want to make profit .

Total ban of everything toxic used in the food industrie is the best thing to do . Alternatives will be found ...

Just as Emdog says ... how did they do the farming before they had access to the toxic substances ...?

With Slave labour.  And then when Rama 5 finally banned all slavery altogether the wealthy land owners had to employ the peasant class at almost slave wages.....which shows we hadn't come far in 100 or so years!  

Pesticides are destroying our environment. Insect numbers are falling. Most insects are not pests, and are essential for environmental maintenance.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/feb/10/plummeting-insect-numbers-threaten-collapse-of-nature.

 

Yes, farming is easier with insecticides. I try to grow organically, and in Thailand it is bloody hard! But if we poison the land, we eventually poison ourselves.

 

I bought in some soil for my garden a few years ago, the first year hardly anything would grow in it. I wonder how much herbicide residue was in it. Some of the plants that did grow had distorted leaves, often a sign of herbicide. Most Thai farmers have no understanding of the effects of using to much herbicides and insecticides.

3 hours ago, nobodysfriend said:

Bon appetit ...

Thai farmers just want to make profit .

Total ban of everything toxic used in the food industrie is the best thing to do . Alternatives will be found ...

Just as Emdog says ... how did they do the farming before they had access to the toxic substances ...?

Total ban Hey, There will be no food if one does that , You know that Fertilizer is a Poison ?

Plant fertilizers can poison people and pets if they are inhaled or accidentally ingested. Touching the fertilizer may cause skin irritation, and ingesting it may be poisonous.

And on Top of that , The produce would be too expensive for people to buy. No fresh Fruit and Veg. People get sick and Die.  ????

10 minutes ago, rickudon said:

Most Thai farmers have no understanding of the effects of using to much herbicides and insecticides.

Paraquat breaks down in soil and becomes harmless. There is a danger to the user if he doesn't take the usual precautions but there is no evidence it enters the food chain. Some like to jump on bandwagons and declare all chemicals as bad but without these weedkillers the price of food would need to more than double to make it anywhere near feasable to grow. Without them I would have to give u farming along with millions of others.

20 hours ago, webfact said:

A farming confederation has expressed its disappointment with the government's decision to ban the use of chemicals paraquat and chlorpyrifos

While cheers from the public will be loud and clear!

Awww, So Sorry ... cuz I know how much you agonize over growing the very best healthy produce for your customers.

Overuse is the big problem with some farmers.  But that's probably not a large group.  We who use the stuff generally would rather not use any more than the recommendation amount as it's a waste of Product/money and the weeds will more than likely return again after the next rain shower.  So you may need to do again.  

Too early to gloat. Last time they made the ban there was a change of mind at the last instant. Don't be fooled twice.

 

On 5/13/2020 at 4:26 PM, worgeordie said:

Yes they will be...but the public will be happy.

And a good deal healthier.