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A recent regulatory appeal from twelve health advocacy and farm worker organizations is calling for the EPA to stop permitting the application of antimicrobial agents on food crops across the US, citing antibiotic-resistant spread and health risks to farm laborers.

Agricultural Industry Applies Millions of Pounds of Antimicrobial Pesticides

The farming industry sprays around 8m lbs of antimicrobial and fungicidal chemicals on American food crops each year, with a number of these chemicals restricted in foreign countries.

“Each year the public are at greater danger from dangerous pathogens and diseases because medical antibiotics are sprayed on produce,” commented an environmental health director.

Superbug Threat Poses Serious Public Health Risks

The widespread application of antibiotics, which are vital for treating human disease, as agricultural chemicals on produce endangers public health because it can cause superbug bacteria. Similarly, frequent use of antifungal agent treatments can lead to fungal infections that are harder to treat with present-day medical drugs.

• Treatment-resistant diseases affect about 2.8m individuals and lead to about 35,000 mortalities annually.
• Health agencies have associated “medically important antibiotics” approved for crop application to drug resistance, greater chance of staph infections and increased risk of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Environmental and Health Impacts

Furthermore, eating drug traces on crops can alter the intestinal flora and elevate the chance of persistent conditions. These substances also taint aquatic systems, and are believed to harm bees. Often poor and Latino farm workers are most vulnerable.

Common Antibiotic Pesticides and Industry Methods

Agricultural operations apply antibiotics because they destroy pathogens that can damage or kill produce. One of the most frequently used antimicrobial treatments is a medical drug, which is often used in healthcare. Estimates indicate up to 125,000 pounds have been applied on US crops in a single year.

Agricultural Sector Pressure and Government Action

The petition comes as the Environmental Protection Agency faces urging to expand the utilization of pharmaceutical drugs. The citrus plant illness, spread by the vector, is destroying fruit farms in southeastern US.

“I understand their desperation because they’re in serious trouble, but from a societal standpoint this is definitely a no-brainer – it cannot happen,” Donley stated. “The bottom line is the massive challenges caused by spraying medical drugs on edible plants far outweigh the crop issues.”

Other Approaches and Long-term Outlook

Experts suggest simple farming steps that should be tested initially, such as wider crop placement, cultivating more hardy types of plants and identifying diseased trees and rapidly extracting them to stop the diseases from transmitting.

The petition provides the EPA about 5 years to act. Previously, the agency outlawed a pesticide in response to a parallel regulatory appeal, but a judge overturned the EPA’s ban.

The regulator can enact a ban, or has to give a reason why it will not. If the regulator, or a future administration, declines to take action, then the groups can take legal action. The legal battle could require many years.

“We are pursuing the long game,” the advocate stated.