Socio-demographic characteristics of farmers
Out of the 790 farmers, the mean age of farmers was 46.04. More than half of farmers (53.7%) belonged to the age group of 30-50 years, 85 below 30 and 281 above 50. Female farmers comprise 51%. Most of them were from Brahmin and Chettri ethnicities, followed by indigenous communities (Tharu, Magar, Tamang, Newar and Chepang). More than three-fourths of farmers (68.1%) were able to read and write and most had attended some levels of formal education.
Use of pesticide by the farmers
Among the farmers participating in the study, 663 (84.0%) exclusively used chemical pesticide while 28 farmers (3.5%) used botanical bio-pesticides only. The rest (12.5%) used both botanical and chemical pesticides in agriculture farming. The farmers exclusively using chemical pesticides (n=663) were included in further analysis of practice. However, the knowledge and attitude/perception related questions were answered by 790 farmers.
Among the 663 farmers who exclusively used chemical pesticides, 62% had no idea about the meaning of the color of the label on the pesticide container. Among the remaining 252 farmers, slightly more than one-fifth (20.7%) used yellow labeled pesticides which are of second hazardous category. Two percent farmers used banned pesticides indicated by red labels (most hazardous).
Among the 663 farmers using chemical pesticide, 60.8% had been using it for more than a decade. Further, most (96%) farmers took advice from a nearby agro-vet (pesticide retailers) on matters related to pest problems and the choice and use of pesticide.
Knowledge of farmers about safe handling of chemical pesticides
More than 90 percent farmers had knowledge about the importance to store pesticide away from the reach of children and animals and about safety clothes while spraying pesticide (Table 1). Knowledge to check the manufacture and expiry date of pesticide was found to be high (84.9%), while checking for the label and information about waiting period before harvest during purchase were low(30% and 32% respectively). Similarly, only a small proportion of farmers knew the procedure of triple rinsing to clean the pesticide container after the spray (14.4%).
Table 1: Knowledge of chemical pesticide use of farmers in the domains of purchase, mixing and spraying, and storage and disposal (n=790)
Descriptions
|
Number
|
Percent
|
During purchase
|
|
|
Check manufacture and expiry date
|
670
|
84.9
|
Check whether the bottle is sealed
|
615
|
77.9
|
Observe the labels of pesticide
|
239
|
30.3
|
Check the indication about waiting period
|
252
|
31.9
|
During mixing and spray
|
|
|
Mix pesticide considering the dose indicated
|
366
|
46.4
|
Mix pesticide away from water sources
|
578
|
73.3
|
Check the container if it is leaking
|
483
|
61.2
|
Wear protective clothes while spray
|
736
|
93.2
|
Spray considering the wind blowing direction
|
621
|
78.7
|
Spray at the right time of the day (evening and in the morning after the dew is dried out)
|
562
|
71.2
|
Maintain at least 1 meter distance between nozzle to body
|
421
|
53.4
|
Spray at the right stage of the crop development
|
380
|
48.2
|
Take caution not to eat, drink, or smoke during spray
|
677
|
85.8
|
During storage and disposal
|
|
|
Store in a dry place
|
542
|
68.6
|
Store pesticide in a separate place away from children and animals
|
744
|
94.3
|
Wash spray tank after use with triple rinsing method
|
114
|
14.4
|
Dispose container safely with the consideration of the environment (bury in an unused area)
|
396
|
50.1
|
Attitude and Perception of farmers about the role of government, consumers and farmers to reduce the use of chemical pesticides
Eighty percent of the farmers believed that the government could discourage the irrational use of chemical pesticides by providing subsidies to farmers adopting organic farming and IPM, and establishing separate market and price set up for IPM and organic products (Table 4). Addressing the issue of pesticide through policy guidelines was pointed out by 37 percent farmers. Nearly three-fourth of the farmers perceived consumers should be more cautious towards their health and 18 percent said consumers should also inquire about pesticide use in foods they buy from the market. More than 85 percent farmers thought they also have the responsibility to promote organic products through their willingness and innovativeness to practice alternative approaches to chemical pesticides in agriculture farming.
Table 2: Attitude and Perception of farmers about chemical pesticide policy and market management (n=790)
Description
|
Number
|
Percent
|
Role of the government
|
Provide subsidy for promoting organic/IPM farmers
|
636
|
80.5
|
Regular supervision and monitoring of pesticide use
|
499
|
63.2
|
Check open border for unregistered and hazardous pesticides
|
400
|
50.6
|
Establish pesticide residue measurement laboratory
|
324
|
41.0
|
Control import and promote local farmers products
|
413
|
52.3
|
Establish separate market and fix a price for IPM/organic products
|
629
|
79.6
|
Conduct consumer awareness programs
|
610
|
77.2
|
Develop policy guidelines for market management
|
291
|
36.8
|
Role of consumers
|
Show concern about pesticide use in vegetable market
|
138
|
17.5
|
Prefer organic product
|
397
|
50.3
|
Select vegetable based on season, color and size
|
313
|
39.6
|
Be conscious about health effect of pesticides
|
559
|
70.8
|
Role of farmers
|
Have willingness to practice organic farming
|
700
|
88.6
|
Search for alternative to chemical pesticides
|
686
|
86.8
|
Practice of chemical pesticide use
Practice of chemical pesticide use by farmers was organized into 3 domains; practice during purchase, practice during mixing and spray, and practice of storage and disposal of chemical pesticides.
Three-fourths of the farmers reported that they checked manufacture and expiry date while less than one-fourths observed the label of pesticide during purchase (Table 5). Fifty four percent of the farmers used protective equipment during spray. Most of the farmers safely stored the chemical pesticides away from the reach of children and animals, but less than thirty percent of farmers considered safety and environment during disposal of pesticides.
Table 3: Practice of chemical pesticide use by farmers (n=663)
Descriptions
|
Number
|
Percent
|
During purchase
|
|
|
Check the manufacture and expiry date
|
489
|
73.8
|
Check whether the bottle is sealed
|
436
|
65.8
|
Observe the labels of pesticide
|
153
|
23.1
|
Check the indication about waiting period
|
112
|
16.9
|
During mixing and spray
|
|
|
Mix pesticide considering the dose indicated
|
229
|
34.5
|
Mix pesticide away from water sources
|
448
|
67.6
|
Check the container if it is leaking
|
281
|
42.4
|
Wear protective clothes from head to toe while spray
|
359
|
54.1
|
Spray considering the wind blowing direction
|
374
|
56.4
|
Spray at the right time of the day (evening and in the morning after the dew is dried out)
|
241
|
36.3
|
Maintain at least 1 meter far from nozzle to body
|
189
|
28.5
|
Spray at the right stage of the crop development (not during flowering stage)
|
161
|
24.3
|
Take caution not to eat, drink, or smoke during spray
|
309
|
46.6
|
During storage and disposal
|
|
|
Store in a dry place
|
497
|
75.0
|
Store pesticide in a separate place (away from children and animals)
|
601
|
90.6
|
Wash the spray tank after use with triple rinsing method
|
346
|
52.2
|
Dispose the container safely with the consideration of the environment (bury in an unused area)
|
194
|
29.3
|
Note: The figures in the table indicate number and percentage of farmers who practiced the safety measures.
Scores on knowledge, attitude/perception and practice of farmers about chemical pesticide use and its safe handling
The knowledge, attitude/perception and the total practice scores were dichotomized into median and above or below the median as adequate/inadequate knowledge, favorable/unfavorable attitude/perception, and safe/unsafe practice, respectively. Accordingly, forty percent of farmers had adequate knowledge about the safe handling of pesticide, and a similar proportion also practiced safe handling. A similar proportion of farmers had favorable perception towards the role of local government, consumers and themselves to reduce the use of pesticide (Figure 1).
Association of safe practice of chemical pesticides with farmers’ knowledge, attitude/perception and socio-demographic factors
Out of the six variables studied, positive association with the practice of farmers on safe handling of pesticides was observed with knowledge about safe practice and perception of farmers about market management, gender and education, (Table 4). Farmers who had adequate knowledge were 8.3 times more likely to practice safe purchasing, four times more likely to practice safe mixing and spraying, and two times more likely to safely store and dispose. Similarly, perception of farmers about chemical pesticide policy and market management was significantly associated with the practice of farmers. There was no significant association between age of farmers and their caste/ethnicity with their practice of adoption of safety measures while handling pesticide, so these variables were not included in the final analysis presented in table 4.
Table 4: Association of farmers’ pesticide handling practice with their knowledge and attitude/perception (n=663)
Descriptions
|
During
Purchase
|
During
Mixing and spray
|
During
Storage and disposal
|
Safe Practice
n (%)
|
COR
(95% CI)
|
AOR
(95% CI)
|
Safe Practice
n (%)
|
COR
(95% CI)
|
AOR
(95% CI)
|
Safe Practice
n (%)
|
COR
(95% CI)
|
AOR
(95% CI)
|
Knowledge of farmers about safe handling of pesticides
|
Adequate
|
141 (52.4)
|
11.2 (7.4-17.2)*
|
8.3 (5.0-13.8)*
|
176 (65.4)
|
6.6 (4.7-9.4)*
|
3.9 (2.5-5.9)*
|
177 (65.8)
|
3.5 (2.5-4.9)*
|
2.4 (1.6-3.6)*
|
Inadequate
|
35 (8.9)
|
1
|
1
|
87 (22.1)
|
1
|
1
|
138 (35.0)
|
1
|
1
|
Perception of farmers about chemical pesticide policy and market management
|
Favorable
|
123 (44.7)
|
5.1 (3.5-7.4)*
|
1.7 (1.1-2.8)*
|
175 (63.6)
|
5.9 (4.2-8.3)*
|
3.0 (2.0-4.5)*
|
173 (62.9)
|
2.9 (2.1-4.0)*
|
1.7 (1.1-2.5)*
|
Unfavorable
|
53 (13.7)
|
1
|
1
|
88 (22.7)
|
1
|
1
|
142 (36.6)
|
1
|
1
|
Gender
|
Male
|
114 (34.7)
|
2.3 (1.6-3.3)*
|
2.0 (1.3-3.1)*
|
176 (53.5)
|
3.2 (2.3-4.5)*
|
3.3 (2.2-4.8)*
|
172 (52.3)
|
1.4 (1.0-1.9)*
|
1.2 (0.8-1.7)*
|
Female
|
62 (18.6)
|
1
|
1
|
87 (26.0)
|
1
|
1
|
143 (42.8)
|
1
|
1
|
Education
|
Can read and write (literate)
|
160 (36.2)
|
7.2 (4.2-12.5)*
|
6.8 (3.8-12.3)*
|
203 (45.9)
|
2.2 (1.6-3.2)*
|
1.7 (1.1-2.6)*
|
241 (54.5)
|
2.3 (1.7-3.3)*
|
2.0 (1.4-2.9)*
|
Can't read and write/ only name
|
16 (7.2)
|
1
|
1
|
60 (27.1)
|
1
|
1
|
74 (33.5)
|
1
|
1
|
*p<0.05; COR: Crude odds ratio; AOR: Adjusted odds ratio
Health problems experienced by farmers (n=663)
Nearly, one-fifth of farmers (18.7%, n=124) had experienced one or more acute symptoms of health problems after handling pesticides during the previous 12 months, which they related to the use of chemical pesticides. Among them, dizziness and headache (n=74), skin allergies (n=66) and burning of eyes (n=35) were the most common symptoms. Others reported nausea/vomiting (n=34), blurred vision, and swelling of body and muscle cramps (n=20) (Figure 2). Farmers with unsafe practice of pesticide handling were two times more likely to suffer from acute poisoning (AOR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.3-3.3) (Table 5). Most (89.5%) of them perceived these symptoms as normal or usual phenomena while handling pesticides, and therefore, ignored health facility visits.
Table 5: Association of acute health symptoms with safe handling practice (n=663)
Descriptions
|
Acute health symptoms
|
Yes
n (%)
|
COR
(95% CI)
|
AOR
(95% CI)
|
Practice of farmers about safe handling of pesticides
|
Unsafe
|
89 (23.6)
|
2.2 (1.4-3.3)*
|
2.1 (1.3-3.3)*
|
Safe
|
35 (12.2)
|
1
|
1
|
Education
|
Can read and write (literate)
|
75 (17.0)
|
1.3 (0.9-2.0)*
|
1.1 (0.7-1.7)*
|
Can't read and write/ only name
|
49 (22.2)
|
1
|
1
|