The increase in harvest of organically grown fruits has been met with applause from consumers and skepticism from agriculturalist. The term “organically grown” can technically refer to produce grown with natural pesticides, contrary to popular belief that no pesticides are used.
Carl Winter, director of the University of California - Davis’s Food Safe Program, said people worry too much about pesticides, natural or otherwise. The program conducts extensive research on pesticides, and the results have led Winter to conclude that “the levels of pesticide residues are very low and thus unharmful at the time food is consumed.”
Winter also said that “there are more illnesses and dangers associated with microbial contamination of food with bacteria, fungi and viruses, often related to improper storage and handling.”
The general public does not realize that they are the largest abusers of pesticides. This was reinforced by a recent survey conducted by the Research Triangle Institute for the EPA. The results were surprising to the EPA but not to us.
1 - Up to one million household still store canceled pesticides such as DDT, chlordane, heptachlor and silvex.
2 - In 47% of the households children under the age of five have easy access to at least one pesticide stored less than four feet off the ground in an unlocked cabinet.
3 - The only safety precaution taken by 60 - 90% of those responding to the survey was washing their hands afterward. Wearing protective clothing such as gloves, long pants and long-sleeved shirt while handling or applying pesticides was used by 33% or less.
4 - The majority of those in the survey disposed of concentrated pesticides through regular trash service. While some used special collections for disposal, many gave the pesticide away, poured it down the sink or toilet, or poured it on the street, in the gutter or sewer or on the ground.
From the results of this survey it is easy to see where the EPA should be concentrating their attention.
While the EPA is going nuts regulating pesticide applications to insure zero exposure to people, the U.S. Army is treating their uniforms with permethrin to kill attacking mosquitoes on contact. Spray cans of the insecticide are now standard issue after its successful campaign in Operation Desert Storm. Army researchers are now working on a way to provide longer term protection by pretreating cloth as it’s manufactured.
Reprint permission given by AgAir Update, P.O. Box 850, Perry, GA 31069 - an international agricultural aviation publication.
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