US urges Thailand to delay ban on pesticide as it will affect Bt51-bn of imports

[webfact]

US urges Thailand to delay ban on pesticide as it will affect Bt51-bn of imports

By THE NATION

 

 

The US Agricultural Department is calling for a delay on the ban on agro-chemical glyphosate, because it says the ban will disrupt Thailand’s import of soybean, wheat, coffee, apples, grapes and other agricultural produce, which is worth Bt51 billion annually, from the US and other trading partners.

 

 

 

This is in response to Thailand’s ban of the three farm chemicals, paraquat, glyphosate and chlorpyrifos, which environmentalists and many health advocates have said are toxic. 

 

Ted McKinney, the undersecretary of Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs of the US Department of Agriculture, wrote to Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha and nine other ministers asking the government to reconsider the ban on pesticide glyphosate. He also said that the National Committee on Hazardous Substances had not made the decision based on scientific evidence. The letter was dated October 18. 

 

Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Bangkok also wrote to Industry Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit, in which it presented the impact the ban will have on Thai farmers and US exports to Thailand. 

 

Suriya responded by saying the government needs to conduct a comprehensive study on substitute chemicals because many parties will be affected, adding that the matter should not be politicised because it will create new problems. 

 

In his letter, McKinney asked for the ban on glyphosate to be delayed until it can be discussed when he visits Thailand. 

 

The US also claims that its Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that glyphosate poses no meaningful risk to human health when used as authorised. 

 

“The EPA’s findings are consistent with scientific reviews conducted by others including Japan, European Union, Australia and the Joint Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations/World Health Organisation Meeting on Pesticide Residues,” the letter stated.

 

Meanwhile, the letter from the embassy estimated that the ban will cost farmers between Bt75 billion and Bt125 billion, because they will have to buy more expensive replacements. If no suitable replacements are found, then farmers will have to hire labour to pull out weeds, the cost of which combined with crop-yield losses, are expected to reach as high as Bt128 billion. 

 

“Of the greatest concern to the US and other Thai agricultural trading partners is an immediate cessation of trade in soybeans, wheat, coffee, apples and grapes among other crops, with the disruption to trade that Thai imports worth as high as $1.7 billion [Bt52 billion] annually,” the letter from the embassy read. 

 

These costs do not consider businesses such as bakeries and instant-noodle manufacturers, who rely 100-per-centn on imported wheat as raw material for this food business worth Bt40 billon annually. 

 

The National Committee on Hazardous Substances voted on October 22 to ban the three toxic agro-chemicals, while farmers, especially sugarcane growers, are threatening to file a lawsuit to seek an injunction.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30377722

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2019-10-25

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[Tounge Thaied]

Oh yeah that World Health Organization, after careful review, declared glyphosate and other agrochemicals to be “probable human carcinogen” 

The U.S. is clearly in denial... I wonder why. 

https://sustainablepulse.com/2015/03/21/who-declares-that-glyphosate-herbicides-probably-cause-cancer/#.W-w7MehKg2w

[ChristianBlessing]

",,,the EPA’s findings are consistent with scientific reviews conducted by others including..."

So, the current US administration and EPA does pay attention to science - especially when there are dollar signs in the footnotes.

[unamazedloso]

this is a joke right? i dont see the US doing something like this at all. What the hell would it have to do with exports from the US?

Farmers pay people to spray who HAVE bery short lives. Thats fact because its dam obvious if you live amoungst farmers as we do.

paying for weed removal isnt any different but just a little slower. 

Not all weees need to be pulled either and can in fact help richen the sil when rotared or plowed for next harvest.

This story is rubbish and jusy about someones wealth who isnt a farmer at all.

[Puchaiyank]

Having to choose between environmentally safe products and incur a lose in profits over continued use of products that poison the environment and destroys people's lives should be an easy decision...if you are not filled with greed...????

 

Controlling greed...finding a fair balance between profit and environment is a world-wide issue with no easy solution...????

 

The US should take the ethical high-road and discontinue products that are under investigation...????

[sunnyboy2018]

If the yanks give enough brown envelopes to the military mafia they will feed this stuff to Issan Babies

[Chang_paarp]

Interesting to start lobbying this late in the decision making process. A lot of face lost if the publicly announced decision has to be reversed, could be salved with a couple of cake boxes. Looks like they have worked out that the ban will include any product treated with these chemicals and that will affect US farmers.

[Oziex1]

So will Thai's listen to a foreigner on this issue when generally they do not.?

[FarFlungFalang]

37 minutes ago, Oziex1 said:

So will Thai's listen to a foreigner on this issue when generally they do not.?

They might listen to the money the foreigner's money.This seems like an open display of blackmail,has Trump been on the phone again?

[canopy]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

The US also claims that its Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that glyphosate poses no meaningful risk to human health when used as authorised. 

Ever been to Thailand?

 

Edited October 24, 2019 by canopy

[PatOngo]

What next?...………..Agent Orange?

[car720]

2 words.

America's interests.

[Matzzon]

3 hours ago, Tounge Thaied said:

The U.S. is clearly in denial... I wonder why.

They will deny that the earth is round, if they risk economical losses.

Edited October 25, 2019 by Matzzon

[boonrawdcnx]

So the US wants us the keep eating the poisoned food they export because it’s good for business?

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

 

[FarFlungFalang]

8 minutes ago, PatOngo said:

What next?...………..Agent Orange?

He's already the Prez.

[holy cow cm]

Whether it be Monsanto or new owner Bayer, glyphosate and these two companies are evil and have great pull on the USA government and internationally. Just evil. 

[ChrisY1]

Much of these chemicals are imported from China.

The US trying to be thuggish as always....but nowadays many countries laugh them off.

[kirbi53]

Looks like the MP who promised he would resign if the chemicals were not banned may have to resign now 

[30la]

And, as always, MONEY!
America recommends / ORDER and everyone follows, who cares how many deaths there will be for a wrong decision, the only important thing: Americans are happy!
There is still talk of sovereign states, does another sovereign state still exist in this world outside the USA?

[MaxLee]

I pretend I didn't read this now....

[beavenlen]

14 hours ago, Tounge Thaied said:

Oh yeah that World Health Organization, after careful review, declared glyphosate and other agrochemicals to be “probable human carcinogen” 

The U.S. is clearly in denial... I wonder why. 

https://sustainablepulse.com/2015/03/21/who-declares-that-glyphosate-herbicides-probably-cause-cancer/#.W-w7MehKg2w

because they make millions if not billions from this product. as usual ---- the third world countries.

[Nyezhov]

 

20 minutes ago, 30la said:

There is still talk of sovereign states, does another sovereign state still exist in this world outside the USA?

Nope, Round up is fine and quite frankly, many of us in the USA have no problem giving the finger to the world at this point in time. Go learn Mandarin if you dont like our policies. Its harder than German or Russian too.

[Assurancetourix]

3 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

 

Nope, Round up is fine and quite frankly, many of us in the USA have no problem giving the finger to the world at this point in time. Go learn Mandarin if you dont like our policies. Its harder than German or Russian too.

 

Since it's as good as that, why do not you keep it for yourself?
What's the point of wanting to share such a good thing with the rest of the world?

 

There is even more difficult than Mandarin: Cantonese 

[mogandave]

I think it hilarious when people go on about cutting into “profits”, as if the farmers are going to take the hit.

 

Crop yields using quality pesticides and herbicides is generally more than double the yield of those that do not.

 

If you want to know the cost of banning these products, go to an upscale Bangkok market. Look at the price of the products in the “organic” produce department and double it. Also, consider the price of animal products when you double the cost of the feed.

 

I’m sure everyone posting here will happy to pay double or triple, and they will not care that the selection is not what it was, but (as always) its the poor that these rules will hurt.

 

 

 

[worgeordie]

12 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

 

Nope, Round up is fine and quite frankly, many of us in the USA have no problem giving the finger to the world at this point in time. Go learn Mandarin if you dont like our policies. Its harder than German or Russian too.

What about the class action suits against  Round up,in the USA,

one person has already won a multi million payout(dont

know if they actually have the cash yet) adverts on Tv for

people that have been affected to join.

regards Worgeordie

[Nyezhov]

3 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

What about the class action suits against  Round up,in the USA,

one person has already won a multi million payout(dont

know if they actually have the cash yet) adverts on Tv for

people that have been affected to join.

regards Worgeordie

From the little I know, the verdict in the recent trial isnt going anywhere on appeal.

[Truthhurts]

This is what you get when you vote in a money mad megalomaniac as POTUS.

He is happy to deny climate change and in this instance advice from the WHO all in the name of avarice and US self interest.

Who cares if a few 'unworthies' die painful deaths? The man and his flunkies are an utter disgrace.

Here's hoping when he is tipped out of office he is put before a court, stripped of all entitlements and exposes as the egotistical, narcissistic, greedy, corrupt, racist, sex pest that he undoubtedly is.

An abomination of a human being

[farmerjo]

4 minutes ago, worgeordie said:

What about the class action suits against  Round up,in the USA,

one person has already won a multi million payout(dont

know if they actually have the cash yet) adverts on Tv for

people that have been affected to join.

regards Worgeordie

Read what the payout was for.  

[farmerjo]

People need to look at the big picture.

Organic farming holds less than 2% of the worlds farming land.

 

[jmccarty]

Ted McKinney and the US Embassy person that wrote this could drink a glass of glyphosate to test it!