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Under the umbrella of “Illict Goods and Global Health”, INTERPOL undertook AFYA II – Preoperational Meeting – Operation against illicit goods and pharmaceutical crime in Harare, Zimbabwe on February 26 – 27.

The trade in illicit products represents a major challenge for the international law enforcement community and a huge risk to global public health. The term “trafficking of illicit products” encompasses practices such as falsification, counterfeiting, piracy, adulteration of products, smuggling and tax evasion. The types of goods affected are many and include pesticides.

CropLife Africa Middle East was invited to deliver a presentation on the impact of counterfeit pesticides which was given by Evelyn Lusenaka and by all accounts was highly appreciated.

The workshop attracted approximately 45 delegates from mainly 10 Southern Africa countries. The AFYA II operation will kick-off shortly with a coordinated press conference in mid-June and the final report issued in October.

The desert locust (Schistocerca gregarial) is one of most problematic pests in the agricultural sector, with a vast number of crop damage that has been recorded recently. The pest presents an important threat to farmers’ income, food security and livelihoods as it continues to spread across countries. Showler (2008) mentioned that they can eat approximately an equivalent of their body mass mostly on green vegetation per day. The pest consumes a variety of crops including millet, rice, maize, sorghum, sugarcane, barley, cotton, date palm, vegetables, bananas and pines (Showler, 2008). FAO has started with preventative and control programmes for the control of the current outbreak of desert locust in The Horn of Africa and parts of the Persian Gulf. This pest has caused a devastating plague to humanity, especially in Africa in the past. The first organized outbreak control started as a campaign in the second half of 19th century across Algeria (Buj Buj, 1995). However, there are still limited pesticides registered to combat this pest. The following countries in Africa and the Middle East (Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, Persian Gulf, Uganda, South Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Yemen) are still battling to control the pest as conditions are more favorable for their breeding due to climate change (FAO, 2020).

In addition, a different species of locusts called the brown locust (Locustana pardalina) has recently been reported in Namibia, Botswana and De Aar area, part of Karoo region (Roger, 2020). This species, as any other locust species fly distances with the wind and is reportedly originates from DRC

Monitoring and scouting of crops regularly is critical for early detection of the devastating pests. Earlier detection and application of appropriate pesticide can assist in minimizing crop losses. Farmers are encouraged to be vigilant and report any outbreaks to local agricultural agencies or Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS) within the FAO. The most effective control is having a correct integrated pest program (IPM) which combines manual control, use of biopesticides, and chemical pesticides as appropriate. Locust outbreaks are sporadic in nature, can breed fast, and multiply up to 20-fold from one generation to the next (Allsopp et al., 1990) in favourable conditions and thus make it difficult to conduct local bio-efficacy studies.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the results of its regulatory review of glyphosate in January 2020 after receiving and considering public comments. In their interim decision, EPA continues to find that there are no risks of concern to human health when glyphosate is used in accordance with its current label. According to the Interim Registration Review Decision, the agency has thoroughly evaluated the potential human health risk associated with exposure to glyphosate and concluded that there are no risks to human health from the currently registered uses of glyphosate and that glyphosate is not likely to be carcinogenic to humans.

Glyphosate is a widely used herbicide that controls broadleaf weeds and grasses and was first registered in 1974. EPA scientists conducted an independent evaluation of available data for glyphosate and found:

No indication that glyphosate is an endocrine disruptor. Glyphosate has undergone Tier I screening under EPA’s Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program and based on all available information, EPA concluded that existing data do not indicate that glyphosate has the potential to interact with the estrogen, androgen or thyroid signalling pathways.

From 1996 to 2018, herbicide tolerant (HT) crops, such as glyphosate and glufosinate tolerant crops, occupied the largest planting area of biotech crops. In 2018 alone, HT crops occupied 87.5 million hectares or 45% of the total 191.7 million hectares of biotech crops planted globally.

In Uganda, stakeholders working on the new bioengineered late blight resistant potato dubbed as the “3R Victoria” are confident of its wide adoption. The yet to be released potato could help 300,000 smallholder farmers in Uganda achieve higher yields at lower production costs and less exposure to chemicals. The stakeholders estimate 40-50% adoption rate for the new variety after its release.

Studies conducted by the International Potato Center (CIP) and National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) scientists since 2015 have confirmed that 3R Victoria potato is completely resistant to late blight disease and safe for human consumption and the environment.

Dr. Marc Ghislain, senior biotechnologist at CIP and cluster leader for CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas said, “An estimated adoption rate of 40 to 50% represents a strong evidence that farmers in this country want to have access to these late blight resistant potatoes and will benefit from them in multiple ways.”

A study conducted by Graham Brookes of PG Economics Ltd. published in the journal GM Crops and Food finds that since 2003, crop biotechnology has helped Colombian farmers grow more food, feed, and fibre, using fewer resources and farm incomes increased by a total of over US$300 million. Crop biotechnology has enabled Colombian farmers to obtain higher yields from better pest and weed control, reducing the environmental footprint associated with the production of cotton and maize.

The study finds that since 2003, about 1 million hectares of biotech cotton and biotech maize were planted in Colombia and in 2018, the technology was used on the equivalent of 90% and 36% respectively of the total cotton and (commercial) maize crops.

The extra production and reduced cost of pest and weed control helped maize farmers attain higher incomes equal to an average of US$294/ha and an average return on investment equal to +US$5.25 for each extra US$1 spent on GM maize seed relative to conventional seed. For cotton farmers, the average increase in income has been +US$358/ha, with an average return on investment equal to +US$3.09 for each extra US$1 spent on GM seed relative to conventional seed. The study also found that crop biotechnology facilitated cuts in fuel use, resulting in a reduction in the release of greenhouse gas emissions from the GM cotton and maize cropping area and contributed to saving scarce land resources