Beware of chemical-laced fruits and vegetables!

A few months ago, four trucks of pointed gourd were disposed of at the Kalimati vegetable market of Kathmandu because they were found to be artificially colored during inspection by the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control (DFTQC).

According to Pramod Koirala, spokesperson of DFTQC, chemical pesticides and plant hormones are being used in an uncontrolled manner in order to expedite the growth and to unnaturally enhance the colors of vegetables and fruits to lure the consumers into buying them.[break]

Four years back, pesticide revenue amounted to approximately Rs 200 million in Nepal but this year, Rs 490 million worth of pesticides were sold.

Photo: Bikash karki

Dr Yubak Dhoj GC, Program Director of Plant Protection Directorate at the Department of Agriculture, says that even though Nepal has endorsed regulatory mechanism through the Pesticide Act to control the use of chemical pesticides during farming, the plan isn’t pragmatic and hasn’t been implemented properly.

“One of the main reasons is also because chemical pesticides such as Malathion, Cypermethrin and Botanicals are readily available in India with which we share open borders. Farmers are even using illegal and date-expired pesticides due to lack of awareness,” informs GC.

Though vegetables and fruits are usually grown using chemical fertilizers, Bharat Prasad Khatiwada, board member of Kalimati Food and Vegetable Development Board, says the practice of using harmful pesticides is more during the rainy season when there is increment in plant infestation.

“We encourage retailers to sell good-quality vegetables. But due to lack of special technology to check and verify quality, all we can do is inspect and get it disposed of if it’s found to be artificially colored,” adds Khatiwada.

GC mentions that during the 1940s, the use of chemical pesticides to increase crop productivity started in most countries around the world. When the Green Revolution – the use of fertilizers and high-yield seeds – came to India, its effect was seen in Nepal as well, and the use of chemical pesticides increased.

“After 1960, developed countries started implementing Integrated Pest Management (IPM) methods which is a technique of producing crops in safer and healthy ways by cutting down the use of chemical pesticides. But in the case of Nepal, it had just started using such chemicals pesticides.”

He mentions that the use of chemical pesticides increased when developed nations started giving away pesticides for free after the 1960s.

“From 1983, agriculture became more commercialized, which was another reason for the increase in the use of harmful pesticides and there was hardly any program to make farmers aware of the harmful impact of chemical pesticides until 1990,” says GC.

GC further informs that in vegetables like brinjal, pumpkin and cauliflower, pesticides such as Metasyslox, Cypermethrin, Roger, Nuvan, Imidacloprid and Malathion are used upto sixteen times, starting from plantation till harvest in order to kill plant-eating insects. Fungicides such as Bevistin, Karathane and Crylaxil are also used to control plant diseases.

“There are different categories of chemical pesticides – red, yellow, blue, and green. There’s a label on each packet, with red label being the most harmful pesticide; yellow, the second most harmful; and blue and green being the safest,” explains GC who is also the coordinator of the National Integrated Pest Management (IPM) agency.

The problem with farmers, GC explains, is that they don’t consult technicians when issues crop up. “Their main intention is to increase production and they use pesticides for that purpose without consultation.”

He also mentions that there are cases when retailers supply whatever is left in stock.

”If farmers want insecticides, they are sometimes given fungicides. If they ask for fungicides, they are even given herbicides. They just sell whatever they have and most farmers are oblivious of the facts,” says GC.

“The Pesticide Act 1991 and Pesticide Regulation 1993 are supposed to regulate the use of pesticides, and also control its production, circulation and import/export. But nothing seems to be done,” says Koirala of DFTQC. “The Pesticide Registration Office is supposed to regulate the Act but nothing’s been done. If the Act was implemented well, a lot of problems can be solved.”

Sabitri Baral, Pesticide Registrar at the Pesticide Registration and Management Division, on the other hand, says they are doing their best to raise awareness among farmers to lessen the use of harmful pesticides to grow vegetables and fruits.

“We don’t have proper budget and manpower to regulate such activities but we’re working on it,” says Baral.

The ill effects of chemical pesticides, however, cannot be ignored. According to GC, consumption of food that has been grown with chemical fertilizers may cause skin irritations and vomiting. In the long run, it can have three different effects. The first is teratogenic effect which leads to deformities as a result of slow reaction of chemical pesticides. The second is mutagenic effect where it affects the genes, and the third is carcinogenic effect which leads to blood cancer.

“Over the years, cancer, stomach diseases, and liver problems have increased due to the intake of low-quality foods that have been grown using harmful chemicals,” says Dr Loke Bikram Thapa, Professor of Surgery Department at Kathmandu University Hospital.

He mentions that such foods also lead to toxic effects on health and may lead to neurotic complications, like having repetitive or unpleasant thoughts, pessimism, aggressiveness and compulsive behavioral acts, among others.

“It has a deep impact on the nervous system and can also cause heart problems. Many pesticides have been banned in other countries and many opt for organic food abroad. But there has been no regulation on the use of harmful pesticides here.”

The DFTQC carries out random checks only when there are complaints that question the quality of the vegetables and fruits that are being sold.

The Plant Protection Directorate, however, is making efforts to lessen the use of chemical pesticides. GC says that their main aim is to decrease the use of chemical pesticides in crops during the production stage itself by teaching preventive and curative measures to farmers and advising them to use chemical fertilizers sparingly.

Photo: Bikash Karki

“We’re also trying to promote the use of non-chemical, biotic and abiotic compounds while regulating the use of such compounds and making them available to license holders only. We’re also planning to establish a pesticide residue analysis lab,” says GC.

He says that farmers need to be aware that pesticides are not medicines. The use of chemical fertilizers is more in practice because such compounds are readily available and are easily dissolvable in the soil, leading to faster growth of crops. Also due to scarcity of organic fertilizers, farmers continue to use chemical fertilizers.

Though chemical-laden vegetables are available at large in the market, GC informs that to remain on the safe side, people should refrain from having off-season vegetables and fruits.

“They should also inquire about the source of the vegetables and fruits that are available in the market and ask the wholesalers if the products have followed the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program and are free of toxic chemicals, else the health hazards in the long run can be severe.”

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