Health Risks of Agrochemicals
Conventional cotton farming takes up only 3% of world's agricultural produce, but contributes to nearly a quarter of world's pesticides. These pesticides (or agrochemicals*) have been known to cause detrimental harm to cotton farmers and young children who get in contact with them (residues of pesticides in the soil end up in the milk of grazing cattle and ultimately the human food chain, causing birth deformities and other ailments).
According to a World Health Organisation report on agrochemicals (see article here), "acute exposure to pesticides can lead to death or serious illness. Chronic pesticide exposure is most often a problem in the occupational setting, particularly among poor rural populations where men, women, and children all work and live in close proximity to fields and orchards where chemicals are applied and stored."
In the same report, it is said that long term exposure to pesticides can increase the risk of disruptive orders in the body, and can lead to certain cancers. Children are also at higher risk from exposure than are adults.
*Agrochemicals, also known as agricultural chemical, is a generic term for the various chemical products used in agriculture. In most cases, agrochemical refers to the broad range of insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, but it may also include synthetic fertilizers, hormones and other chemical growth agents, and concentrated stores of raw animal manure.
Debt-Ridden Conventional Cotton Farmers
Ironically, the use of pesticides increases conventional cotton yield but it also contributes to poverty of the farmers who use them. Pests have grown resilient to the pesticides over the years and farmers end up paying more to buy stronger and more expensive pesticides to rid them. Many of these farmers borrow and end up in debt that never seem to be repayable. According to an article in Ode Magazine (December 2007), suicides in rural Indian cotton farmers have been rampant. In the month of August 2007 alone, 110 farmers committed suicide in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra state (central India).
What Is Organic Cotton
It takes at least 3 consecutive years of chemical-free farming to certify a crop as organic. Organic farming is more time-consuming and laborious as the farmers often have to prepare organic manure made up of worm compost and herbal pesticides. The yield of organic cotton is better but lesser, whereas genetically modified cotton yields nearly 3 times higher than organic cotton produce. The lure of high yield GM cotton makes many conventional cotton farmers reluctant to switch to organic farming.
But the good news is organic cotton is gaining popularity, particularly in the West and European countries and some big fashion players like Nike and Patagonia have started to embrace organic cotton.
If more and more consumers support organic cotton and the payback from organic cotton farming gets higher, more conventional cotton farmers will be enticed to grow organic cotton.
So a small change of preference of discerning consumers like you will definitely go a long way in rejuvenating our fragile soil, making our world a better one.
