HIDDEN HEALTH COSTS OF PESTICIDE USE IN ZIMBABWE'S SMALLHOLDER COTTON

Balancing the numerous benefits that may accrue from pesticide use on cotton, farmers face health hazards. Pesticide-induced acute symptoms significantly increased the cost of illness in a survey of 280 smallholder cotton growers in two districts of Zimbabwe. Cotton growers lost a mean of Z$180 in Sanyati and Z$316 per year in Chipinge on pesticide-related direct and indirect acute health effects. These values are equivalent to 45% and 83% of annual household pesticide expenditures in the two districts. The time spent recuperating from illnesses attributed to pesticides averaged 2 days in Sanyati and 4 days in Chipinge during the 1998/99 growing season. These pesticide health cost estimates represent lower bounds only; they omit chronic pesticide health effects as well as suffering and other non-monetary costs. Acute pesticide symptoms were determined in large part by pesticide use practices, notably the lack of protective clothing. Yet many smallholder farmers misunderstood pesticide health hazards, and so did little to protect themselves. Despite the use of simple color codes, 22% of smallholder cotton growers in Sanyati and 58% in Chipinge did not know how to order the four colored pesticide label triangles by toxicity. Better farmer education in exposure averting strategies is needed. Likewise, fuller accounting for hidden health costs in future would allow farmers to make more informed decisions about agricultural pest management.Crop Production/Industries, Health Economics and Policy,

Entrepreneurial and Buyer-Driven Local Wine Supply Chains: Case Study of Acres of Land Winery in Kentucky

The IFAMR is the flagship journal in Agribusiness published quarterly by IFAMA. More information can be found at: www.ifama.or

A Dynamic Shift Share Analysis of Economic Growth in West Virginia

A regional economy consists of industries with a variety of economic potentials. A growth or decline in any of these sectors affects the overall growth of the economy. Analysis of economic growth by sector of a particular region helps policy makers, community leaders and researchers in better decision making and problem solving. This study attempts to analyze the employment growth pattern and policy implications in the economic development of West Virginia using a dynamic shift share analysis. The study uses employment data for 38 years from 1970 to 2007 for the empirical analysis. Results indicate that agriculture, mining and manufacturing are no longer the backbone of the economy of West Virginia. The three sectors showed employment declined within the 38-year period. Service and financial insurance and real estate are the most robust sectors contributing 91 percent of employment growth from 1970 to 2007. Apart from these two sectors, the wholesale and retail and construction sectors showed positive economic growth. Identification of investment priorities within these potential sectors and implementation of a comprehensive regional development policy plan would definitely accelerate the economic growth of West Virginia

Vertical Coordination to Smallholder Small Grain Growers in Zimbabwe: Benefits of Contract Farming and Policy Implications

Zimbabwe’s agro-ecological regions IV and V lie in low rainfall areas and food security is a perennial concern. Vertical coordination strategies and market institutions provide hope for building farmer resilience in regions affected by climate change in Zimbabwe. This study focused on four districts (Binga, Chiredzi, Hwange, Matobo) which are in regions IV and V. A questionnaire was used to collect data from 281 respondents. Probit and Multiple linear regression models were used to evaluate the determinants. Results show that contract farmers allocated more than 3 hectares to small grains agricultural enterprise. The research established that long distances to markets, access to credit, extension services and affiliation to farming groups are some critical determinants which influence market participation and yields sold

Health Service Providers\u27 Preferences in ICT Use for Health Service Delivery in Namibia

Health service providers (HSP) in both the private and public health service institutions in Namibia have adopted information and communication technologies (ICT) for health service delivery (HSD). The extent to which ICT are currently being used is, however, not yet fully known. Also unknown are the preferences of the HSPs in the use of different types of ICT applications and hardware. Lastly, the perception of HSPs on various issues on the use of ICT for health service delivery is also unknown. Without a clear understanding of these issues, it is difficult for government to formulate strategies and policies to promote the effective adoption of ICT in the healthcare sector. Patients are also likely to make a sub-optimal use of the available ICT to improve their access to health services in Namibia. A study was conducted to address these unknown points. The study highlights the importance of ICT use by HSPs and the imperative to align the ICT use expectations, needs and requirements of patients with those of HSPs in Namibia to ensure effective use. The results of the experiment are reported in this paper

A dynamic shift share analysis of economic growth

Abstract A regional economy consists of industries with a variety of economic potentials. A growth or decline in any of these sectors affects the overall growth of the economy

HIDDEN HEALTH COSTS OF PESTICIDE USE IN ZIMBABWE'S SMALLHOLDER COTTON

Balancing the numerous benefits that may accrue from pesticide use on cotton, farmers face health hazards. Pesticide-induced acute symptoms significantly increased the cost of illness in a survey of 280 smallholder cotton growers in two districts of Zimbabwe. Cotton growers lost a mean of Z$180 in Sanyati and Z$316 per year in Chipinge on pesticide-related direct and indirect acute health effects. These values are equivalent to 45% and 83% of annual household pesticide expenditures in the two districts. The time spent recuperating from illnesses attributed to pesticides averaged 2 days in Sanyati and 4 days in Chipinge during the 1998/99 growing season. These pesticide health cost estimates represent lower bounds only; they omit chronic pesticide health effects as well as suffering and other non-monetary costs. Acute pesticide symptoms were determined in large part by pesticide use practices, notably the lack of protective clothing. Yet many smallholder farmers misunderstood pesticide health hazards, and so did little to protect themselves. Despite the use of simple color codes, 22% of smallholder cotton growers in Sanyati and 58% in Chipinge did not know how to order the four colored pesticide label triangles by toxicity. Better farmer education in exposure averting strategies is needed. Likewise, fuller accounting for hidden health costs in future would allow farmers to make more informed decisions about agricultural pest management

WHY DO SMALLHOLDER COTTON GROWERS IN ZIMBABWE ADOPT IPPM? THE ROLE OF PESTICIDE-RELATED HEALTH RISKS AND TECHNOLOGY AWARENESS

In order to test whether farmer training and farmer health risks determine adoption of Integrated Pest and Production Management (IPPM) in Zimbabwe, a Poisson regression model was developed. The empirical analysis uses measures of farmer awareness of IPPM practices, pesticide health risks, labor and capital availability, expected pest damage and other conditioning variables. The results of the analysis show that farmer awareness of IPPM practices is significantly associated with their adoption. Pesticide-related health risks however had no significant influence on the adoption of IPPM technologies. This evidence suggests that the government of Zimbabwe should expand its use of farmer field schools and other farmer-to-farmer approaches that diffuse IPPM awareness.Environmental Economics and Policy, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Entrepreneurial and Buyer-Driven Local Wine Supply Chains: Case Study of Acres of Land Winery in Kentucky

The Kentucky wine industry has grown rapidly over the past decade as farmers diversify from tobacco to alternative enterprises. The objectives of this paper are to; (i) describe the conversion of a family-owned tobacco farm into a fledgling wine enterprise (ii) identify market competitive and coordination strategies being used by an emerging winery, (iii) determine key challenges facing the development of a small winery and (iv) recommend future studies for improving the performance of local wine supply chains. The paper is based on a case study of Acres of Land winery in Kentucky and it uses qualitative data collected during visits to the farm in 2007, 2008 and 2009. The case study shows the development of the winery and the organization of the local wine supply chain. Results indicate that Acres of Land winery is fully vertically integrated and actively pursues both competitive and risk management strategies. The winery faces challenges such as “dry county” restrictions, government licensing requirements, changing consumer preferences, and growing industry competition

Hidden health costs of pesticide use in Zimbabwe's smallholder cotton growers

Balancing the numerous benefits that may accrue from pesticide use on cotton, farmers face health hazards. Pesticide-induced acute symptoms significantly increased the cost-of-illness in a survey of 280 smallholder cotton growers in two districts of Zimbabwe. Cotton growers lost a mean of Z$180 in Sanyati and Z$316 per year in Chipinge on pesticide-related direct and indirect acute health effects. These values are equivalent to 45% and 83% of annual household pesticide expenditures in the two districts. The time spent recuperating from illnesses attributed to pesticides averaged 2 days in Sanyati and 4 days in Chipinge during the 1998/1999 growing season. These pesticide health cost estimates represent lower bounds only; they omit chronic pesticide health effects as well as suffering and other non-monetary costs. Acute pesticide symptoms were determined in large part by pesticide use practices, notably the lack of protective clothing. Yet many smallholder farmers misunderstood pesticide health hazards, and so did little to protect themselves. Despite the use of simple color codes, 22% of smallholder cotton growers in Sanyati and 58% in Chipinge did not know how the four colored triangles communicated increasing degrees of pesticide toxicity. Better farmer education in exposure averting strategies is needed. Likewise, fuller accounting for hidden health costs in future would allow farmers to make more informed decisions about agricultural pest management.Pesticide Occupational health Cost-of-illness Agriculture Cotton Zimbabwe