FEATURE
CREAM OF THE CROP
Treating crops with pesticides is a potentially harmful process but, according to the European Crop Protection Association, it cannot be avoided. Tanita Cross finds out how the organisation ensures farmers use chemicals safely.
Crop protection products have long divided public opinion. Campaigns about the impact of pesticides on human health and the environment rage on. Organically produced products appear on the shelves of UK supermarkets as standard and organisations like The Soil Association champion organic farming for its planet-friendly methods.
On the other side of the fence, the European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) represents the crop protection industry in Europe, which seeks to educate the public on why pesticides and fertilisers are still needed. The Director General of the ECPA, Jean-Charles Bocquet, believes the rise of urban living has influenced the public’s perception of chemical intervention on farms.
He said: “The majority of the public now lives quite far from the countryside. Most people live in cities with regular access to reasonable, good quality, affordable food, so people believe we can produce this
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food without using pesticides and fertilisers. However, with global warming, farmers are facing more pests and more disease – today, biological control is not enough. We still have to use chemical solutions.”
While their use remains controversial in many circles, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) estimates over 17 million kilograms of pesticides were applied in the UK in 2013. Given that their use is still so prevalent, not only in the UK but across Europe, the ECPA is working hard to promote the proper use of crop protection products among farmers.
According to Jean-Charles, “a crop protection product is more or less like medicine. As humans, when we have a disease or an illness, we have to take medicine and, of course, we have to take medicine according to the recommendations on the label and the advice given by the doctor.
“We are doing the same for pesticides. Pesticides are used
by farmers to protect their crops from disease, pests and weeds. This has no affect on farmer health, consumer health or the environment, if the product is applied according to the label recommendation.”
With this in mind, in 2011, the association launched a project called Hungry for Change to bring together all its initiatives on water, biodiversity, food and health under one coherent banner. Focusing on farmer health, one of the ECPA’s flagship schemes is the Safe and Sustainable Use Initiative (SUI), which has now been running for 10 years.
The SUI has three clear objectives. First, it intends to reduce pesticide exposure to farmers by offering full training in application techniques. Second, the initiative promotes the use of personal protective equipment among farm workers. Finally, the ECPA aims to reduce the environmental impact of pesticide use through the correct disposal of empty containers.
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