Concern inTonga over crop pesticide and cancer link

Transcript

Tonga's Ministry of Agriculture says the misuse of pesticides there is contaminating food crops, affecting the health of farmers and could be causing cancer.

Its deputy director, Sione Foliaki, has been researching the use and effects of agrochemicals and says it is an issue that requires urgent attention in Tonga.

Dr Foliaki says many farmers tend to use too much pesticide on their crops, which can seep into the soil and waterways, causing a health risk for the community.

SIONE FOLIAKI: There has been work to do pesticide awareness, to train farmers how to use pesticide efficiently and also the safe use of pesticides. Because they are toxic chemicals. For the safety of the farmers themselves, because they are handling toxic chemicals, and also for the consumers, the people who are buying the vegetables daily for their daily consumption at home. There has been a lot of work, but it's not enough. In the case of Tonga, I have been observing a lot, been talking to a lot of people with their expertise in health, and my observation in Tonga is that there has been a lot of cancer incidents in Tonga. A lot of people have been dying of cancer - and my question now is, why is cancer now in Tonga one of the number one cause of death? Is there any contribution of the using of pesticide? In my observation and my personal opinion, yes. There is a lot of contribution by the misuse of pesticides in Tonga, because everything goes down to the water resources in the islands.

MARY BAINES: So you say this issue needs urgent attention, and an action plan needs to be put in place. So what would you like to see done?

SF: Study all those pesticides. Make sure what are the linkages between those pesticides between cancers in human beings. So if there is a linkage, how can we minimise the use, make sure that the current trend of people dying from cancer can be minimised to more or less zero, zero percent.

MB: So has much research been done about this across the Pacific Islands or is your paper one of the first?

SF: I don't think so. There have been a few studies, not much. There has been done by a lot of Europeans but not specifically in the Pacific. In the case of Tonga, there is hardly none.

MB: How is this pesticide being misused, is just too much being used on crops?

SF: Well it is. Because similar to New Zealand, whenever you see insects or diseases on your crops, the only remedies open to farmers is to buy toxic chemicals and spray. I believe there are alternative ways to handle those. Some of those chemicals leak into the water, they go underground and cause cancer.

MB: So you work with farmers to discuss these kinds of issues?

SF: Yeah. I have been working with them for the last three years. I am trying to get some strategy and it has been working so far.