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Study estimates 46% of farmers face acute pesticide poisoning annually

The research, using 2006 to 2023 data, estimates 11,000 pesticide-related deaths each year, with nearly 60% in India.

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A new study commissioned by Pesticide Action Network estimates that about 46% of the world’s farmers and farm workers experience unintentional acute pesticide poisoning each year, based on publicly available data covering 2006 to 2023.

The analysis puts the global total of acute poisonings at an estimated 402 million to 433 million cases annually, using an overall worldwide farming population of 934 million. The highest estimated number of poisonings occurs in southern Asia, followed by south-east Asia and east Africa.

The study, published in Frontiers in Public Health, estimates that pesticide poisoning kills roughly 11,000 people every year, with nearly 60% of those deaths in India. It also finds the top national incidence of poisoning is in Burkina Faso, where nearly 84% of farmers and farm workers reported experiencing poisoning.

Authors are calling for immediate action, including implementing a UN recommendation to phase out highly hazardous pesticides, as global pesticide use has continued to rise. The study says 3.8 million tonnes were used in 2023, about double the level in 1990, and it does not account for impacts on children in agriculture or long-term health effects.

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