Assessment of Farmers Knowledge, Attitude, Health Risk Perception and Practices toward Pesticide use and Safety in Surulere Local Government, Oyo State, Nigeria

In the fields of the developing world, agriculture relies heavily on a double-edged sword: chemical pesticides. These substances are designed to kill the insects and weeds that threaten crops, ensuring that farmers can feed their families and communities. However, the very tools that protect the harvest can also poison the people who wield them. When farmers mix and spray these chemicals without proper protection, the toxins can enter their bodies through their skin, lungs, or by accident. This exposure leads to immediate sickness, such as headaches and breathing trouble, and can cause long-term damage to the nervous system. The danger is not just a personal health issue; it is an environmental one as well. When farmers wash their contaminated clothes in local streams or pour leftover poison near drinking wells, the water becomes toxic for the entire community. Understanding how farmers think about these risks, and why they often choose dangerous methods despite knowing the dangers, is essential to stopping the cycle of poisoning.

A team of researchers from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology set out to understand this complex situation in Surulere, a farming community in Oyo State, Nigeria. Between June and October 2023, they visited three villages within the local government area and spoke directly with 102 farmers. Their goal was not just to count how many people used pesticides, but to understand the gap between what farmers know about safety and what they actually do in the field. They asked detailed questions about the farmers' lives, their education, the crops they grew, the specific chemicals they bought, and the symptoms they felt after spraying. The study focused on the reality of daily farm work, looking for the reasons why safety measures are often ignored even when the risks are known.

The farmers interviewed were experienced men, mostly in their fifties, who had been working the land for decades. They grew a variety of crops, with maize and yam being the most common. To protect these crops from pests like grasshoppers and armyworms, they relied on a handful of specific chemical brands. The researchers found that the farmers' choices were driven almost entirely by cost and availability. They preferred certain products because they were cheap and easy to find, not because they were the safest option. In fact, when asked what mattered most, every single farmer said they prioritized the low price of the chemical over its safety profile. This economic pressure created a situation where the cheapest, often most hazardous, chemicals were the most popular.

The way these farmers handled the chemicals revealed a pattern of risky behavior that put them and their families in danger. Most of them stored their pesticides in their homes or directly on the farm, often in open areas where children or livestock could reach them. When they finished using the chemicals, they rarely disposed of the empty containers properly. Instead, more than half of the farmers washed the empty bottles and reused them for other purposes, such as carrying water or storing food. This practice meant that toxic residues remained in containers that were then used for daily household tasks. Furthermore, when they had leftover liquid from their sprays, many poured it onto their fields, into nearby streams, or even close to wells used for drinking water, contaminating the local water supply.

Perhaps the most striking finding was the near-total absence of protective gear. The study asked the farmers if they wore gloves, masks, boots, or special suits while spraying. The answers were stark: only a tiny fraction of the farmers wore gloves, and the vast majority wore only sandals or slippers while handling toxic chemicals. Most wore no protective clothing at all. When they finished their work, the majority washed their contaminated clothes in the village stream, spreading the poison into the water that the whole community used. Despite this lack of protection, the farmers were not unaware of the risks. Every single person interviewed reported feeling sick after spraying. The most common symptoms were chest pain, severe headaches, and excessive sweating. Many had visited a hospital in the past five years for these issues, yet the unsafe practices continued.

The researchers discovered that the farmers often learned how to use these chemicals from each other or from the local shopkeepers who sold them, rather than from official agricultural experts. The shopkeepers, who were always available, would tell the farmers how much to mix, while the farmers rarely read the warning labels on the bottles. Even though the farmers had years of experience and many had received some formal education, this knowledge did not translate into safer habits. The study showed that older, more educated farmers with larger families actually used the chemicals more frequently and in larger quantities, likely because they felt the pressure to maximize their harvest to support their households. This suggests that experience and education alone are not enough to change behavior when economic survival is at stake.

The study concludes that there is a deep divide between what farmers know and how they act. They understand that the chemicals can make them sick, but the immediate need to protect their crops and save money overrides their concern for long-term health. The researchers argue that simply telling farmers to be safe is not working. Instead, they recommend a new approach that involves training the shopkeepers who sell the chemicals, creating safety certification programs for farmers, and running campaigns that promote the use of cheaper but less harmful alternatives. Without these changes, the cycle of poisoning will continue, affecting the health of the farmers, their families, and the environment they depend on. The path forward requires acknowledging that safety is not just a matter of knowledge, but of making safe choices affordable and accessible for everyone.