Research Explorer. Pesticides have contributed to several recent deaths and an untold number of illnesses in Upper East Region of Ghana [16]. The result implies that farmers who have access to television and radio are more aware than those without radio, ceteris paribus. [21] in their research on pesticide application among farmers in the catchment of Ashaiman Irrigation Scheme of Ghana: health implications revealed that out of 74 farmers observed spraying pesticides on their farms, 36.5% used nose guards, 45.9% used boots, 31% used hand gloves, and 25.7% wore dresses that covered the whole body except the eyes. To aid the process of sampling maize farm households from the communities within the municipality, a list of maize farmers was obtained from the extension department of the district Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) office. Despite the reduced use of agrochemicals, unsafe chemical use practices are high among farmers in Africa. According to Horna et al. An agrochemical or agrichemical, a contraction of agricultural chemical, is a chemical product used in industrial agriculture. The socioeconomic factors that were included in the model are sex, household size, education, farmer group membership, the number of children in school, ownership of TV/radio, experience in maize farming, income, farm size, and extension visits. where is the expected utility for farmers who are more aware of safety use of agrochemicals and is the expected utility for farmers who are less aware of safety use of agrochemicals. Bangladeshi poor and untrained farmers apply the agrochemicals massively for getting rapid and huge returns from their shared lands causing incurable risks for the ecosystem and human health. In Ghana, most rural folks depend on lakes, streams, and rivers as sources of drinking water. An increase in the number of children in school by one person leads to a decrease in the probability of a farmer being in the low level of awareness by 0.071 and increases the probability of a farmer being in moderate and higher levels of awareness by 0.053 and 0.018, respectively. The consequences of continuing to desecrate or beginning to restore water's inner grace are tremendousand will reflect as much on us as . We have worked on creating, manufacturing, and distributing agrochemicals (agricultural insecticides, pesticides, herbicides, insanitary insecticides, and soil fumigants). Marginal effects of ordered logit model and the individual awareness levels. To estimate the effect of awareness level on farm output, multiple linear regression model was used where awareness level is an additional explanatory variable measuring the effect on output. Significant penalties can result from misuse, including improper storage resulting in chemical leaks, chemical leaching, and chemical spills. Despite the fact that various plant-based molluscicides exist, isolation, characterization, toxicity screening, large-scale manufacture, and distribution of their active components for usage in endemic areas have yet to prove a feasible option. dC'/TH$k-N[-GC K"f% )M^;^9H5eH$IkNKOsuV-# cb>c\_Z_~s--f0#,C]{|8 j|,bmfsSENT"DX Insecticides are chemicals that are used to kill, damage, repel, or control insects. In Ghana agriculture and public health sectors remain the major contributors of pollutants into the environment. B. Dinham, Growing vegetables in developing countries for local urban populations and export markets: problems confronting small-scale producers, Pest Management Science, vol. The significant differences in the cutoff points indicate that the three categories statistically and significantly differ and hence all the three categories should be included in the model. To view EPA's new healthy lawn care practices video, visit: Healthy Lawncare Practices. The amino acid and protein synthesis of herbs and weeds are interrupted, and they are finally killed. Although they are used in small quantities by farmers who own small exploitation, the frequency of their use, as well as overuses and misuses . 0000000016 00000 n Farm size recorded minimum value of 1 acre and maximum of 23 acres with mean value 4.909 acres. In 2013, 1,764,477MT of maize was produced and out of this value, Ashanti Region which was the third largest production region recorded a value of 201,786MT [2]. [5] Chemical fertilizers in the 1960s were responsible for the beginning of the "Green Revolution", where using the same surface of land using intensive irrigation and mineral fertilizers such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium has greatly increased food production. 2018; 2018: 2874160. . D. Horna, M. Smale, M. Al-Hassan, R. J. Falck-Zepeda, and S. E. Timpo, Insecticides use on vegetables in ghana: would GM seed benefit farmers? IFPRI Discussion Paper 007855, 2008. The reason could be that farmers who are educated can read and understand labels on agrochemical containers and adhere to safety standards. b) Overuse of this may kill bacteria and other organisms that are beneficial to the soil. Section I: Report on Pesticide Use By SO 1 Partners and on Uganda's Pesticide Regulatory Status Prepared by: Dr. George A. Schaefers, Dr. Robert C. Hedlund, and Dr. Samuel Kyamanywa Prepared for: U.S. Agency for International Development/Uganda April 1999 Environmental Policy and Institutional Strengthening Indefinite Quantity Contract (EPIQ) The banana weevil (Cosmopolites sordidus Germar) was ranked as the most important agricultural pest by 85% of participants, yet only 28% could associate the adult and larval form. The positive relationship was in line with the a priori expectation. The explanatory variables explain 21% (pseudo R2) variations in the awareness level. The finding is consistent with Ajah and Nmadu [24], who found that an increase in household size leads to an increase in maize output. Farmers and homeowners must be licensed to apply restricted pesticides. Agrochemicals are a broad term that refers to a variety of chemicals designed to protect plants and crops. Once acomplaintis filed with the Department, a field investigator is assigned the case. This definition is valid when one is looking at the theory of consumer behavior. Extension visit was not statistically significant and this could be that agricultural extension agents do not advise farmers on safety use of agrochemicals. Farmers awareness levels were calculated from their responses on agrochemical application practices and health awareness indicators. W. H. Greene, Econometric Analysis, Prentice Hall, New Jersey, NJ, USA, 7th edition, 2008. This could be that large-scale farmers do not apply pesticides by themselves regularly and usually get this job done by hired labor. 0000001455 00000 n Many farmers do not have adequate knowledge and information on the health hazards associated with handling and use of pesticides [6]. Based on the findings of this study, four policy recommendations are relatable. Exposure. Please turn on JavaScript and try again. It is a confirmation of a research conducted by Gaber and Abdel-Latif [23] which opined that farmers who received school education had more knowledge about the negative effects of pesticides on health. Agrochemical use and occupational and environmental exposures in export banana production have been documented in some parts of Central America. According to Glover-Amengor and Tetteh [25], apart from agrochemicals affecting the environment as poisons, most pesticides used in agriculture in Ghana also affect the crops directly by causing increases in yield at optimum rates and decreases in yield with increasing concentrations. They were then scored 1 for awareness and 0 otherwise. Regarding the independent variables, we cannot say how representative our sample is in terms of the types of governance . The misuse of agrochemicals in coffee production is a reality. This is a system that incorporates preventive cultural, mechanical, physical, biological and chemical controls. Abstract. The study will also provide information to policy-makers and agricultural extension officers to come out with effective training programs for farmers. Selective pesticides, insecticides, soil conditioners, and other agricultural chemicals can result in brighter and larger fruits and vegetables. However, problems could arise through the indiscriminate use and in 1962 these were highlighted by Rachel Carson in her book Silent Spring 13. 5, article no. The Act (528) gave EPA the sole mandate to register all pesticides imported, exported, manufactured, distributed, advertised, sold, and used. Take time to observe the surrounding area. Usually, the regulations are carried out through the registration process. Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreements, Safety and Health Assistance for Ag Employers, Commercial Pesticide Applicator/ Operator Training and Testing, Private Pesticide Applicator Training and Testing, Licensed Pesticide Operators /Applicators /Dealers Search, Aerial Pesticide Application Questions and Answers, Agrichemical Facilities Containment Program, Containment Requirements for "On-farm" Agrichemicals. It is therefore recommended that field training and practical educational programs on good and safety use of agrochemicals should be adopted by agencies to raise farmers awareness level of the risk associated with agrochemical use. The agrochemicals industry contributes to agricultural progress by producing high-quality foods. Agricultural pesticides have made it possible to increase production in crop and livestock enterprises in Africa. In many countries, use of agrichemicals is highly regulated. Education years were hypothesized to be positively related to maize output. It has a positive effect on output and hence meets the a priori expectation. The socioeconomic variables included in the Cobb-Douglas production function are labor, farmers awareness levels of health implications of agrochemicals use, age, marital status, household size, years of education, extension contacts, credit, farm size, and quantity of pesticides. Antibiotic resistance is one of the world's most urgent health problems. It is, therefore, important to know the limiting factors to farmers awareness of health risks associated with agrochemical use. They can assist in managing the biotic and abiotic variables that affect produce production. $83.00 1 New from $83.00. The study sought to identify factors that influence maize farmers awareness of health implications of agrochemicals use and its impact on maize output in Ejura-Sekyedumase Municipality. A cost-benefit analysis conducted with a separate group of 26 plantain farmers identified several national markets and one export market for plantain production in the Indigenous Territories. Introduction. HXDJ0M`|p)%M-Y@Ln3gzsd1eH``c8R9r }j_ Source: authors computations from field survey, 2015. Meanwhile, most rural folks depend on lakes, streams, and rivers as sources of drinking water thereby linking chemical contamination exposures closely with toxicity. 2020, Elixir Agriculture 138 (2019) 54069-54075. Northern Presbyterian Agricultural Services (NPAS), Ghana's Pesticide Crisis: The Need for Further Government Action, Northern Presbyterian Agricultural Services (NPAS), Tamale, Ghana, 2012. The minimum and maximum household sizes were 1 person and 16 persons, respectively, with a mean of 6 persons per household. The awareness level was significantly explained by education, the number of children in school, ownership of TV/radio, experience in agrochemicals use, and farm size. e.g. The insignificant influence of income and FBO membership on farmers awareness of health implications of agrochemical use is supported by the work of [7]. 2431, 2013. In this study, the level of awareness of health implications of agrochemical use was ordered as shown in (3). Understanding the problem of pesticide misuse in the Third World requires analysis of both political-economic forces and local-level variations in peasant behavior and attitudes. Agrochemical is any chemical that is used in agricultural production to improve productivity and control of pest and diseases [4]. Weed controls are essential for maintaining good crop output. Herbicide use is very common in agrochemical-based agriculture, especially due to the promotion of herbicide-tolerant genetically modified crops. Others simply indicate the product should not be used when weather conditions favor drift. Modern Agricultural Practices: A dilemma of farmer and farm workers health in cash crop zone in the Maharashtra State. In this study, the number of extension visits had a positive relationship with maize output. This implies that smallholder maize farmers are more aware of agrochemicals use risk than large-scale farmers holding other factors constant. 0000010179 00000 n 2, pp. %PDF-1.4 % C. K. Bempah and A. K. Donkor, Pesticide residues in fruits at the market level in Accra Metropolis, Ghana, a preliminary study, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, vol. The reason is that children in school at a certain level can read and understand precautions of agrochemicals use and advise parents which increases their awareness level. Excessive utilization of these chemicals generate residues that cause nutrients imbalance and reduction of the yielding capacity of crops. 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