Food Systems in an Unequal World: Pesticides, Vegetables, and Agrarian Capitalism in Costa Rica

Glossary of Pesticide Terms

active ingredient (ai): The chemical compound that acts against the pest organism. As a measurement, it is used to standardize comparisons of pesticide intensity. See also pesticide intensity. bad actor pesticides: A classification created by the Pesticide Action Network (PAN), an activist and research organization, to differentiate between pesticides known to cause problems and those that are likely to be less harmful. A pesticide qualifies as a bad actor if it is any of the following: a highly acute toxin according to the World Health Organization , the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), or the U.S. National Toxicology Program; a known or probable carcinogen according to the EPA; a reproductive or developmental toxin listed in California’s Proposition 65 list; a cholinesterase inhibitor according to the Material Safety Data Sheet, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation, or the PAN staff’s evaluation of chemical structure; or a known groundwater contaminant. biopesticides: Pesticides of direct biological origin, such as plant extracts. carbamates: A group of synthetic pesticides that reversibly inactivate the acetylcholinesterase enzyme, which is a key component of the nervous system (the organophosphates irreversibly block the same enzyme). Like the organophosphates, these compounds are acutely toxic to humans and other animals, meaning that contact with small doses can lead to poisoning or death. formulated product: Consists of the active ingredient and other ingredients , such as surfactants and emulsifiers, that help the active ingredient or are used to improve storage, application, and/or handling. inorganic pesticides: Pesticide compounds without carbon, typically created from metallic elements such as arsenic, copper, and lead as well Glossary of Pesticide Terms 248 Glossary of Pesticide Terms as nonmetallic elements such as sulfur. Their use predates synthetic pesticides made from the tools of organic chemistry. integrated pest management (IPM): Originally developed as an alternative to heavy pesticide spraying with an emphasis on control of pest organisms through cultural practices (timing, rotations, cultivation, variety selection, etc.) and biological control (promoting conditions that supported beneficial insects such as predators and parasites of pests). The concept relies on economic thresholds, that is, not spraying until it makes definitive economic sense to do so, which demands data collection on pest populations. The term has been co-opted by industry and is sometimes critiqued as “integrated pesticide management.” LD50: Stands for “lethal dose, 50 percent” and means the dose at which a compound kills half of the test organisms during a controlled toxicological test. LD50 is a measurement commonly used in toxicology to assess the acute toxicity of compounds. maximum residue limit (MRL): See tolerance. organochlorines: A group of synthetic pesticides that were very efficacious in agriculture because of their persistence. These were the first popular synthetic pesticides, adopted widely after World War II. DDT is the most (in)famous of this group. Generally, these compounds persist in the environment and bioaccumulate, increasing in concentration in fat tissue in organisms higher on the food chain. Their threats to humans and wild animals led to most of them being banned in the industrialized world in the 1970s. organophosphates: A group of synthetic pesticides and nerve agents that irreversibly block the acetylcholinesterase enzyme, required for nerve functioning in insects, humans, and other animals. The organophosphates typically degrade faster than the organochlorine pesticides but are much more acutely toxic. These pesticides usually cause the most poisoning events among farmers and farmworkers in the developing world. Organophosphates are particularly hazardous to the brain development of fetuses and children. Organophosphate compounds include the nerve agent sarin, classified as a weapon of mass destruction. parts per million (ppm): Equivalent to milligrams per kilogram and commonly used as a measurement to specify residues detected (on food or in the environment), tolerances, and LD50. Glossary of Pesticide Terms 249 pesticide intensity: The amount of pesticide used over a spatial area and a time horizon (e.g., active ingredient per hectare per year, which I write as ai/ha/yr). preharvest interval (PHI): Refers to the amount of time between a pesticide application and the harvest. Generally, the shorter the PHI on a pesticide label, the more rapid the degradation of a pesticide. Pesticides with very low PHIs (such as pyrethroids) often degrade rapidly, even below the detection limit of sophisticated residue testing equipment. pyrethroids: A group of synthetic insecticides modeled after pyrethrin, a biopesticide from chrysanthemums. Pyrethroids are generally applied at much lower doses per hectare than the organophosphate, carbamate , and organochloride pesticides and are generally...