The Trump administration says there won’t be a crackdown on pesticide use in the U.S. Politico says that’s despite a report from the Make America Healthy Again Committee that called crop protection products dangerous to people’s health.
During a recent policy roundtable in Washington, D.C., seven out of the ten speakers mentioned how important pesticides and fertilizers are in modern agricultural production systems. Agriculture industry lobbyists have been pushing back against the Make America Healthy Again Committee report, which linked pesticides to cancer and other diseases.
A letter from the National Corn Growers Association to the White House noted the pesticides in question have already been approved by the EPA. Our alarm stems from the initial assessment, which raised pesticide safety questions that have already been answered repeatedly over the decades by research and regulatory agencies,” the letter said. “If such language is included in the policy recommendations, it could significantly hamper the work of America’s farmers and raise prices for consumers without providing any additional layer of safety for the American public.”
The letter says if the pesticides in the original report were to disappear completely, crop yields could decrease by more than 70 percent due to pests, weeds, and disease. Every pesticide approved for use must submit dozens, if not hundreds, of test results for EPA review.
A White House official, speaking anonymously to Politico, says a plan for acting on the MAHA report is due in August and won’t include new policies on pesticide use.
The promise may signal the White House is eager to smooth out trouble spots with farmers and farm groups that have typically supported the administration but felt alienated by plans to overhaul the nation’s food supply.
###
NAFB
