**1. Introduction**

The rise in the number of chemicals being introduced into agriculture and horticulture has given rise to some concerns over the safety of the food crop and that of the operator. A working party was established in the UK which passed some regulations over the possible risks to consumers of treated crops. This led directly to the formation of the Advisory Committee on Poisonous Substances used in agriculture, which extended concern to effects on the environment. However, new toxic chemicals and their formulations need to be brought to the notice of the Government before being put on the market. The introduction of the Pesticides Safety Precautions Scheme (PSPS) strengthened the requirement in which manufacturers of the new chemical were required to provide data relating to the safety of the product; full description, proposed uses, mode of action, toxicity and persistence, relevant to the user of the product, consumer of treated produce, domestic animals and wildlife.

The outcome of such products was published with the key elements included on product labels; advice on operator safety, target crops, dose rate limitations, harvest interval, and environmental safety. The PSPS was accompanied by the voluntary scheme which evaluates the efficacy of crop protection chemicals prior to the approval of chemical and based on trials efficacy data.

The increasing regulatory requirements are seen over decades, and especially in the past 20 years, have placed much financial pressure on the research-based crop protection companies. Increasing demands for toxicology, metabolism, and environmental data to support registration applications have resulted in a cost of approximately £100 million to discover research, develop and register a new product. Earlier, horticultural and vegetable markets were targeted pesticides markets, today such are far too small to justify the investment in required regulatory studies and can only be considered as "add-on markets" to be considered once success in a major market has been achieved. Markets must also be considered at the international level no single country market would justify the investment in pesticides research and development.

#### **2. Pesticides in agriculture**

Pesticide is defined as a product that kills or controls various types of pests, plant, or animal that is harmful to man or the environment. Pesticides are used in agriculture to protect crops against insects, fungi, weeds, nematodes, and parasitic plant pests, as well as to protect public health in controlling vectors of tropical diseases. They can also be used to prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate any pest and can either kill pests or render them ineffective. Pesticides are used on fruits, vegetables, wheat, rice, olives, tree crops, canola pressed into oil, and on non-food crops, such as cotton, grass, and flowers. Pesticides applied to food crops in the field can leave potentially harmful residues after pesticides are applied to the crops, they may interact with the plant surfaces, be exposed to environmental factors, such as wind, sun, and maybe washed off during rainfall. The pesticide may be absorbed by the plant surface (waxy cuticle and root surfaces) and enter the plant transport system (systemic) or stay on the surface of the plant (contact). The pesticides that get into the plant tissues may be transformed (metabolized) or sequestered in the tissues to form the pesticide residue.

Pesticide residues are the deposits of pesticide active ingredients, their metabolites or breakdown products are present in some components of the environment after their application, spillage, or dumping. The presence of pesticide residues is a concern for consumers because pesticides are known to have potentially harmful effects on other nontargeted organisms than pests and diseases. Infants, children, and adults are commonly exposed to pesticides by eating them on and in food and animals equally ingest such through feeds and mills. Pesticides are potentially toxic to humans and have been linked to a wide range of human health hazards, ranging from short-term impacts, such as headaches and nausea to chronic impacts, such as cancer, reproductive harm, and endocrine disruption.

#### **3. Benefits and risks of pesticides**

The application of any chemical to a crop or food raises the question of risks and benefits. This discussion of risk has shifted from dealing with toxicity to the user in the field and the consumer to a much wider focus that includes the whole environment and the ecosystem in which the crops are growing. As a consequence, more and more studies are required before a fungicide can be used, leading to enormous development costs. This leads the industry to concentrate on the big markets, while smaller markets are increasingly left out and in urgent need of effective fungicides. Overall, most analyses come to the conclusion that the benefits of fungicides far outweigh the risks, if they are used carefully and according to the label recommendations. Currently, more than 80% of the fruit and vegetable crops have been known to receive a fungicide every season.

## **4. International standard and requirements**

There are standard organizations of international reputes that certify and license agricultural products for safe consumption and to fulfill the international requirement for the trade. These standard organizations are also functional at regional and national levels and requirements at these levels are often benchmarked with the provision of the international organizations. Such organizations include but are not limited to 4C Association, Bonsucro (Better Sugar Cane Initiative), Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), Fairtrade International, FSC, RSB, SAN (Sustainable Agriculture Network), and UTZ.

Growers, produce buyers and agents, warehouse owners, manufacturers, and even the general public, have perceived the use of chemicals for various purposes as part of everyday life, either for domestic or agricultural. This has led to the indiscriminate use of pesticides for varied reasons and in search of quick action and effect. The uncoordinated system in this sector of agriculture, lacking regulation and enforcement required for best practices and safety measures in the handling of agrochemicals prompted this study. This in a way undermined the associated risks of indiscriminate use of these agrochemicals, their toxicity, and residues on plants, animals, man, and the environment. Agrochemicals commonly sold in open markets were surveyed; the target crops, associated hazards/risks, and their safety statuses were evaluated based on the benchmark by international standard organizations.
