Safe Use Initiative SUI In Southern Europe

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Safe Use Initiative (SUI) In Southern Europe

• A Worker Safety Programme
• In Collaboration With Main Stakeholders

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Countries (Pilot Areas)

• Areas with intensive use of crop protection
  products and potential for high operator
  contami-nation have been selected
• Spain (Almería)
• Portugal (Minho)
• France (Bordeaux)
• Italy (Apulia)
• Greece (Crete)
• Poland (Warka/Grojec)

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Aim

• Label compliance
• Reduction of potential operator exposure by
  innovative application techniques
• Reduction of actual dermal and inhalation
  exposures by appropriate PPE and its proper use
• Reduction of the environmental impact by
  container rinsing
• Proper handling of crop protection products by
  training, education, and public awareness

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Baseline Survey
Countries (pilot areas) 200 growers/operators
have been observed and interviewed by
professional market research institutes

• Observation

• Face to face interview

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Success factors

• From the baseline survey 20-30 success factors
  (parameters which need improvement) have been
  derived
• Linked with the success factors 12 main messages
  to be communicated to growers/operators for the
  safe use have been developed
• The strategy is to identify and cover gaps
  important to be improved
• In order to monitor the success in the countries
  the success factors will be measured again
  (progress survey) after a period of about 3 years

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Measures
Communication campaign
Symposium/Exhibitions
Safe Use
PPE
Training / Demo farms
Label text
Novel spray equipment
Network
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Reduction of operator exposure by novel
application technology

• Greenhouses Compared with the standard spray gun
  (potential exposure measured on patches)

25x less
70x less
7x less
Fumicar
Trolley
Fumimatic
The trials were carried out in Greece and Spain
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Reduction of operator exposure by walking
backwards

• Greenhouses Compared with walking forward
  (actual dermal exposure measured on inner
  dosimeters operators wore cotton coveralls)

7x less
The trials were carried out in Crete, Greece in
pepper crop
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Evaluation of protective clothing
Selection of fabric from Greek and Portuguese
manufacturers
Laboratory penetration tests
Comfort trials by farmers in the field
Recommendation / Certification
Exposure trials by operators in the field
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Recommendation of protective clothing
Greece (greenhouses)
Portugal (vine)

• Chemical protective clothing (type 1-6) does not
  reflect agricultural use. This clothing is
  designed for handling chemical in manufacturing
  plants, e.g. against splashes (type 6) or direct
  spray (type 4).
• Recommendation for the high exposure scenarios
• Cotton gt250 g/m2 twill
• Light polyester/cotton 200 g/m2 with Resist
  Spills (NanoPel) repellent finish (50
  launderings without ironing)

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Protective clothing for hand held application in
high operator exposure scenarios

• There are scenarios where operator exposure via
  direct contact to treated foliage cannot be
  avoided, e.g.
• Narrow or no rows
• Pepper crops grown in greenhouses in Spain

Impermeable protective clothing is required
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Recommended impermeable protective clothing
Chemsol 2-piece
Rain suit (not EN category III, but category I
certified)
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Communication campaign

• Awareness campaign
• Billboards/Poster
• Radio/ TV
• Advertising/Press releases
• Farmer Exhibitions

• Technical campaign
• Brochure/leaflets
• Calendar
• Web site
• Video

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Web sites
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12 key messages to cover gaps identified by the
baseline survey

• Web site
• Brochures
• Leaflets
• Calendar
• Exhibition
• Video

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Billboards
40 billboards were placed in the Almería region
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Farmer exhibitions
Almería 2004
Ierapetra 2006
Road-show 2006 Minho
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Highlights in Greek communication campaign

• About 45,000 SUI brochure were distributed all
  over Greece as an enclosure to the Daily
  Newspaper
• The Ministry of Rural Development and Food
  requested the broadcasting of the
• SUI TV spot through the National TV during May
  2006 free of charge
• SUI radio messages through all National Radio
  Stations in Crete till the end 2006 free of
  charge

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Training of farmers

• The aim is not to establish own training
  schemes, but to support existing official
  training bodies, as e.g. the
• Research and Training Centre La Mojonera in
  Almería, Spain
• OKEEKA DIMITRA in Greece
• Ministry of Agriculture (DGADR) in Portugal

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Practical training on demo farm

• In collaboration with officials (Institutes /
  Training centers) demo farms in Greece (Crete)
  and Portugal (Minho) have been established.
• Farmers can see and discuss practical solutions
  which they can then copy.

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Practical training examples
Product store room
PPE store room
Mixing/loading platform
Sand for spills
Emergency shower
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Results / Conclusions

• Higher awareness of occupational and
  environmental safety
• Higher safety margins for potential contacts to
  plant protection products
• Less space for misuse, carelessness and accidents

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Outlook (plan 2008 -2010)

• SUI Spain to reactivate awareness campaign
• SUI Greece to expand (greenhouse crops in
  central-western Greece, olives in Voiotia,
  vineyards in Korinthos)
• SUI Portugal to expand (horticulture in the
  northern coast Esposende / Ilhavo / Mira and the
  rice area in Mondego valley)
• SUI France and Italy to roll-out programme
• SUI Poland to launch base-line survey

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Many thanks for your attention