Glufosinate harmful to women in agriculture; approval of resistant GM mustard can increase its use: Report

A report on Glufosinate Ammonium (GA) highlighting its adverse effects on the health of women workforce in agriculture has been released recently by the Pesticide Action Network India, a non-profit national organization.

The report assumes significance in the context of the approval of the GA-resistant, genetically modified (GM) mustard by the Indian regulator, which also forbids farmers from using it.

Dr Narasimha Reddy, co-author of the report and a public policy expert, warns that the “introduction of glufosinate-resistant crops will pave the way for its wider use and increases dependency on this herbicide.”

“There is no scientifically justified, agronomically established explanation of why GA-resistant crops are being introduced in India. Elsewhere there is at least a modicum of rationale that GA is a replacement given weed resistance to glyphosate,” he argued in a national webinar hosted while releasing the report.

Highlighting the health impacts of GA, Dr Reddy argued that small and marginal farmers do not have access to personal protection equipment (PPE). The Union government is unwilling to acknowledge this reality. Because there is no antidote available to glufosinate, poisoned individuals can have a very uncertain future, he added.

The report is titled Glufosinate Ammonium — An Overview.  The webinar titled ‘Glufosinate Ammonium in India: Impact on Work and Health of Women Agriculturists’ discussed the adverse effects of the use of herbicides in general and highlighted the possible adverse effects and impacts on rural farm workforce, especially women. Dr Sudhya Chepyala, Dr Narasimha Reddy, Roshni Sathyan and Heera Kurian presented their views. They shared concerns over reproductive toxicity caused by herbicides as well as its social implications and pointed out that women in society are affected more than men.

The authors also pointed out its unauthorised use in India, as brought by a 2016 Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) report. In addition, GA use in India is expected to increase piggyback on herbicide-tolerant crops. Biosafety and bioefficacy of GA usage are not publicly validated, the authors said.

Quoting literature, they said GA could result in inhalational and contact exposures causing widespread poisoning. It can impact the nervous, reproductive and cardiovascular systems, and on developing foetuses in animals. This is why it is banned in 29 countries. A total of six plants/weeds were found to be resistant to GA, including Amaranth palmeri.

GA and GM mustard

The introduction of glufosinate-resistant crops, such as GM mustard, will open a path for the wider use of GA. “GA has the potential to burden women agriculturists with income loss, livelihood displacement, (the) burden of deformed children and (impact) on their physical abilities,” said Heera Kurian while speaking on ‘Social implications of reproductive toxicity on women’.

GA is used as a chemical method to control weeds, and the livelihoods of women labour are heavily dependent on work to de-weed agricultural fields. Increased usage of chemicals such as GA can impact their health and consequently access to work and earning, Kurian added.

Dr Sudha, an integrative medicine physician said glufosinate was a deadly chemical that could trigger a number of chronic health issues in human beings and animals. Evidence suggests a decrease in male fertility upon exposure to GA. The risk of cancer, and adverse effects on reproduction and development are the major concerns based on the evidence from animal studies. Dr Sudha added that various environmental factors were playing a key role in worsening adverse effects of glufosinate and other weedicides, which, however, is not studied adequately.

Speaking on the reproductive toxicity of herbicides, Roshni Sathyam said, “GA has the potential of causing damage to developing foetuses, exposure to women during childhood, adolescent and childbearing period is considered as most dangerous. Children, impacted by reproductive toxicity, will be the lifelong burden of mothers. Infertility caused by reproductive toxicity can lead to (the) castigation of wives, (rather) than husbands, in rural India.”

Overall, the speakers batted for eco-friendly technology that ensures farmer and worker safety as well as safe food production. Permitting transgenic, GA-tolerant crops is a sure method of enabling monopoly in the seed and agrochemical sector at the cost of farmers, farm labour as well as the environment. India needs to ban GA. given its potential impact on the health and wealth of rural India.

(M Somasekhar is an independent journalist who specializes in Science & Technology, Agriculture, Business and start-ups based out of Hyderabad.)