Page 48 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 19

Food Health

THE REAL COST OF

SYNTHETIC PESTICIDES

AND THE

AGRO-CHEMICAL

VALUE CHAIN

was reading a report published out a few things that caught my Chioma Phillips
at the end of November 2021 attention that I thought were worth is the Editor of Msingi Afrika Mag-
by the Bureau for the Apprais- presenting in this article. The
I al of Social Impacts for Citi- authors start their report off by azine and the host of Msingi Afrika
zen information (BASIC), CCFD- pointing out that the growing use Television. Her hope is to see the Truth
Terre Solidaire and Pollinis called of pesticides is linked to the agricul- shared, with all who will listen, for the
“Pesticides: A Model That’s Costing tural revolution of the 20th century,
Us Dearly. An initial cost-benefit through which “a new paradigm transformation of the people and the
analysis of the pesticide sector at spread across the world that public continent of Afrika - and the world.
the European level” and, of course authorities claim is aimed at improv-
I wanted to share everything with ing food security around the world.
you. But it’s too long to fit here. You This paradigm is based on four synthetic pesticides.”
can read and download the 25-page interdependent pillars, namely:
English synthesized version here • Motorized and industrial- Now, when you consider the depen-
or the full report in French here or ized agricultural machinery; dence of synthetic fertilizers on the
read the brief summary on their • Synthetic fertilizers; petroleum industry as well as the
website here. • Hybrid seeds; and, conse- ability of these fertilizers to destroy
quently the natural storage and cycling
So, what I did instead was to pick • The widespread use of capacity of carbon and nitrogen of
the soil – as well as their impact on

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