Are there also shops in Pattaya or Bangkok where only organic products are sold? I ask this because in Thailand you are not only poisoned by air pollution, but also through your food. Thai farmers are known to happily spray poisons that have long been banned in Europe because of the possible link with Parkinson's disease and cancer.
Married to a farmer's wife
Although my wife was born and raised in a “big” city (Ubon), now that we live in the countryside, she started farming. Just to do something positive for the world and save some money. She does not grow rice, but grows fish, fruit, mushrooms and vegetables.
Here in Thailand you occasionally see men at resorts but also in parking garages gassing mosquitoes with a 2-stroke chemical blower, yesterday at my hotel the gas entered the lobby like a thick fog, it smells pretty bad.
Farmers angry about ban on pesticides
After two years of talks, the use of the three dangerous chemical pesticides paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos has finally been banned.
Proponents of dangerous agricultural poison in the counterattack
This week, farmers from the Northeast who grow cassava protested against a ban on the three dangerous pesticides. Director Voranica Nagavajara Bedinghaus, of the Thai Agricultural Innovation Trade Association (Taita), threatens to go to the administrative court if the National Hazardous Substances Commission decides to ban the pesticides next Tuesday.
Panel votes to ban hazardous pesticides
After more than two hours of discussion, a panel of representatives from government, farmers and consumers voted to ban the use of paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos. This does not mean that a ban is yet in force, because the Hazardous Substances Commission (NHSC) ultimately decides on this.
No ban in Thailand on dangerous agricultural poisons
Yesterday, the National Hazardous Substances Commission rejected a request from a network of 700 organizations for a ban on a number of dangerous pesticides. This was requested by the Ministry of Health and the Ombudsman.
Soon a decision on the use of three dangerous pesticides
On February 14, the National Hazardous Substances Commission will announce its decision on the use of three hazardous pesticides in agriculture.
The Hazardous Substance Commission (HSC) has revised its decision to ban three chemicals commonly used in agriculture. Paraquat, chlorpyrifos and glyphosate, which are very harmful to humans and animals, may nevertheless continue to be used in the cultivation of maize, cassava, sugar cane, rubber, palm oil and fruit.
The National Reform Committee on Social Issues will investigate the use of toxic pesticides such as paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifosone, which are used in large quantities in Thai agriculture and are banned in, for example, Europe.
Prayut wants to get rid of the highly toxic pesticide paraquat, but farmers can continue to use it
Prime Minister Prayut wants the ministries of health, commerce and agriculture to look for other agrochemicals to replace the highly toxic paraquat, which is still used in agriculture in Thailand to control weeds.
Dangerous pesticides in Thai food
This week the Dutch broadcast of BVN showed a report on how the food chain was affected. Some insects were almost eradicated. One of the causes was the use of pesticides to control the food against pests. However, the smallest worms and beetles form the food for the larger animals.
Anyone who thinks that the food in Thailand is healthy as well as tasty should read Bangkok Post more often. Research shows that 64 percent of vegetables sold in malls and markets are heavily contaminated with toxic pesticides. This is according to a study by the Thailand Pesticide Alert Network.
Thai farmers are increasingly confronted with health problems because they spray unprotected poison on their crops. The Ministry of Health says that 32 percent of farmers are at risk of health problems due to the (sometimes banned) pesticides they use.
We have written about it before, but this research also confirms the problem with fruit and vegetables in Thailand. It is full of pesticide residues that are hazardous to health.