By AgroNigeria
Agricultural stakeholders are appealing to the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to outlaw the use of paraquat as an herbicide in the country.
Paraquat is a chemical herbicide used all over the world and it known by the brand name ‘Gramoxone’.
The stakeholders made the call in a communiqué released in a meeting themed “Digital Tools: Disruptive Innovations in Cassava/Maize Farming Systems” which held at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan.
The proposed ban, as stated in the communiqué, was hinged on the health and environmental concerns raised by weed scientists on the use of the chemical.
It was gathered that a report by Dr. Udensi Udensi, a weed scientist at the University of Port Harcourt, titled “The Rural Appraisal on the Use of Paraquat in Nigeria” placed paraquat as one of the most highly toxic herbicides marketed in the last 60 years.
The statement read, “Paraquat remains one of the pesticides responsible for more fatal poisonings than any other pesticides substances
“Workers who are exposed to paraquat over a long period have been found to be at an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease later in life”
The stakeholders further prayed NAFDAC to hasten the process of banning the chemical from the Nigerian market, in order to safeguard the health of farmers and protect the environment.
They added that alternatives that are found safer and effective such as; glyphosate, glufosinate, diphenyl ether, cyclohexanediones, and arlyoxyphenoxy-propionate, can be encouraged.