FNV symposium on clean crops and safe workers:

“Clean crops, safe workers: Working together for healthy, sustainable supply chains” was the title of the symposium organized by Mondiaal FNV in The Hague on 19 September 2025. The focus lay on protecting employees from pesticides and other plant protection products used in the seed, flower and palm oil industries. Much progress is possible with strong trade unions and critical consumers.

How to protect workers and their communities in the seed, flower and palm oil industries from the dangers of agricultural chemicals? That was the central question of the symposium at the Humanity Hub in The Hague. Attention was paid to the risks, the practical solutions for improving the health and safety of workers, and the vital role of trade unions in advocating for change. Attendees included (international) trade union members and leaders, NGO representatives, the business community and civil servants.

Acute pesticide poisoning

Professor Hans Kromhout, a specialist in occupational hygiene and epidemiology at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences at Utrecht University, kicked off the event with an absorbing lecture. Kromhout has been researching the effects of pesticides, including on breast cancer since the late 1980s. He has observed significant differences in use between the global North and the global South.

Kromhout conducted two studies on the effects of pesticides in the flower sector in both Kenya and Ethiopia, with a time interval of 25 years to see if things had improved. The opposite turned out to be case. Ethiopia showed not only an increase in the use of pesticides, but also the use of the more dangerous pesticides, still without any form of protection. Around 16 per cent of the country’s workers suffer from acute pesticide poisoning (APP). The situation in Kenya is no better when it comes to pesticide use. In addition, an increasing number of people there are ending up in poorly paid jobs. "That's how we get cheap roses," Kromhout observed dryly.

“No strange bugs”

Kromhout advocates, among other things, for primary prevention through a worldwide ban on pesticides that are considered harmful. A global registration of agricultural chemicals, and certification, might also help. The researcher further advocates for critical consumers. Someone in the audience spontaneously exclaimed: "I will never buy flowers again! But that's not a solution for the workers." Kromhout believes that awareness in the Netherlands is reasonably high, thanks to neurologists and general practitioners who keep the topic alive in the news. "The main input in our bodies is food," he said, and European Union (EU) regulations play a role. "Beans imported from Africa have to be sprayed because we don't want their diseases. EU regulations say 'No weird bugs'."

Taking responsibility

In the video 'Clean Crops, Safe Workers', FNV director Jeroen Brandenburg explains the dilemma in detail: "We are one of the largest producers and exporters of agricultural products in the world. Many of our products are cultivated in African and Asia countries, and a major problem is that a lot of plant protection products are used there. It seems to me that if the Netherlands plays such a big role in the agricultural sector, it should take responsibility for reducing the use of these products, and for improving safety when they are indeed used."

Polluted rivers

Leaders of foreign trade unions in the seed, flower and palm oil industries with whom Mondiaal FNV collaborates shared their experience with pesticides in a forum discussion. Ndaizivei Kamoto of IUF, the global union federation in the food sector, explained that agricultural unions in Africa are primarily fighting for the lives of workers. "We lose a colleague every day." Gustavo Aristizabal of the Colombian palm oil union Sintra Palmas emphasised that they too work with pesticides that are banned in the European Union. Lahoucine Boulberj of the Moroccan agricultural union FNSA has been fighting for years for protective equipment for union members who work with pesticides. Emelia Ghansah of the Ghanaian agricultural union GAWU pointed out that job security was the top priority of her members. "As workers are afraid of losing their job, they are also afraid of standing up to injustice." Chennaiah Poguri of the Indian trade union federation NAAWU said that 34 pesticides banned worldwide are still being used in India. "They pollute the seeds, but also the rivers, while the agricultural workers are very poorly paid."

Collecting data

Colleague trade union leaders from abroad agreed that raising awareness was very important. Boulberj said that workers now know that pesticides cause health problems, such as skin rashes and breathing difficulties. The Moroccan agricultural union has developed an information programme on the subject together with Mondiaal FNV. Workers in Ghana also receive training, although Ghansah advocates for more labour inspections in the fields. Poguri's trade union federation collects data on working conditions in the various seed production companies and uses this to lobby the government. Prevention and monitoring were also mentioned as crucial actions. Astrid Kaag, policy officer at Mondiaal FNV, added that pressure on the buying companies by FNV and other parties can certainly also help.

Solutions at a glance

At the end of the symposium, all the suggested solutions were listed. These include the use of suitable protective equipment adapted for the tropics, the banning of the most dangerous plant protection products, switching over to organic pesticides, better enforcement, drawing up an action plan, as well as trade unions jointly developing programmes for better and healthier work practise.

Report: Astrid van Unen