Kenya produce exports hit by EU pesticide rules

Kenya is finding it harder to sell fresh produce to its key markets in the European Union as major supermarkets implement new pesticide regulations.

The new regulations announced by the EU last year, whose implementation began early this month, sharply reduce allowed residue limits in pesticides.

This means farmers need to ensure produce has no traces of pesticides that could be harmful to humans, especially common pesticides such as dimethioate.

Although scientists advised that dimethioate was safe, the EU Parliament passed a vote under directive 994 that regulates the pesticides use to drastically reduce the residue limits from 5mg/kg to 0.02mg/kg.

Stephen Mbithi, the chief executive at the Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya warned that farmers could see their produce blocked from the EU market if they failed to comply with the regulations.

"This is now the lowest limit of detection, meaning if a farmer uses it, chances of produce rejection are high, even when pre-harvest intervals of seven days are observed,” Dr Mbithi said.

Most small-scale growers — who cannot afford alternatives to what he termed as one of the most effective insecticides — have so far not complied, said Dr Mbithi.

Smallholders account for 60 per cent of total vegetable export produce, and last year earned $238 million in foreign exchange.

Dimethioate joins substances like methomyl bromide and oxamyl, which had been banned earlier.

Considering that exporters are bound to shoulder the cost of destruction or shipping back in case produce is rejected, the association has directed growers to steer clear of the pesticide until further notice.

Complicating the situation further is the supermarkets’ position that even 0.02mg is not acceptable, basically insisting on non-use, a development that even growers in the EU are fighting to reverse. 

"We are aware of the difficulties experienced by even growers in the EU as a result of this new directive, which has led to an application by UK growers to the European Food Safety Authority to raise the MRL 10 fold,” Dr Mbithi said.

According to an industry insider who asked not to be named, Kenya is supporting the UK growers’ petition for a review, albeit behind the scenes.

"We cannot openly campaign against an EU market directive, but will give moral support to UK growers because if they succeed, we shall all be winners,” the source said. 

After discussions between FPEAK, the Pesticides Control Produce Board, the Horticultural Crops Development Authority and the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service, it was agreed that the best bet is to discourage use of dimethoate on all produce by both small-scale and large-scale farmers.

Dr Mbithi, however is concerned that even if the EU were to re-consider its position on dimethioate, supermarkets were unlikely to change the current “don’t use” policy. 

"We do not consider that organophosphates have much future in managing pests and diseases, and even though the alternatives are more expensive, they are more sustainable from a regulatory food safety point of view,” he said adding, “we are working with regulatory agents and the Agrochemical Association of Kenya to have it withdrawn from all agro-chemical stores.”

The makers of the product, BASF, who are part of the Dimethioate Task Force, termed the move more of a “bureaucratic issue than a safety issue.”