There is a saying in Thailand that agriculture is the backbone of the country. Its beautiful landscape, blanketed by rolling green hills and rice fields, farms with an abundance of tropical fruits and vegetables. But on closer inspection, the picture is not so pretty.
Everyday, 25 millions farmers go out into the fields, the majority spraying copious amounts of pesticides. It is poison, not just for pests but for humans too.
A major exporter of rice, rubber, corn, tropical fruit, and cassava, Thailand's farmlands supply many of the world's countries with bulk produce — so much so that it equates to more than 15 billion U.S. dollars per year. To meet this demand, the Kingdom relies heavily on pesticides to control insect populations and increase the yield.
Farmers like Sunthong Samathimongkol, a mango farmer in Central Thailand, say there is no choice. "The first thing people look at is the appearance, then it's the taste. Both rely purely on chemical sprays. For me there’s no other alternative."
Sunthong has been using chemical pesticides since he has been a farmer. But years of exposure have taken its toll. Dangerous levels of toxic chemicals have been detected in the blood of 30 percent of farmers with more than 6,000 people falling ill last year due to their exposure. "Doctors said that I have a have a risky level of contamination from my blood test" Sunthong says. "So I can only spray chemicals for no more than three hours each day otherwise it will be dangerous to my health."
A danger to farmers like him but also a danger to consumers to ingest tainted fruits and vegetables everyday.
Even after harvesting, food may be doused with chemicals. And because many crops are picked soon after being treated with pesticides, the poison can remain on food as it hits the marketplace and the dining table.
The danger to consumers is magnified by the short time, in many cases, between spraying of pesticides and harvesting. /CGTN Photo
A non-profit agency, the Thailand Pesticide Alert Network, has reported that more than 40 percent of fruits and vegetables sold in fresh markets and supermarkets in Thailand were highly contaminated with chemicals that have been banned in many countries around the world, but not in Thailand.
Prokchol Ousap, a Coordinator at Thailand Pesticide Alert Network says the effects are starting to be seen. "In one sample, there is always more than one chemical present with some even containing up to 21 chemicals on one fruit," she says. "For consumers, there has been a rise in children born with autism, more Thais are getting cancer, we are seeing the effects and it's serious."
Thailand's quest to boost its harvests has led to an insatiable appetite for agro-chemicals, quadrupling their use in the last decade. The country is now one of the world's biggest users of agricultural chemicals. But with many importing nations seeking to protect their consumers by requiring that food be inspected for pesticide residue, this means, Thai produce intended for export is often sent back.
While stringent inspections in importing countries may keep contaminated Thai produce from being sold abroad, little has been done to prevent harmful food from reaching domestic markets. /CGTN Photo
As the government promotes Thailand as the 'kitchen of the world,' critics say that a serious overhaul of regulations and restrictions needs to be enforced so that the reforms will be taken seriously - protecting both consumers and farm workers from the chemicals.
Prokchol agrees, "If Thailand wants to become the kitchen of the world, and agriculture the backbone of the country, if we do not begin to regulate the use of harmful chemicals, we will never reach that goal."