What is a pesticide? - how pesticides work - classifying pesticides; pesticides and the environment - where are pesticides used? - the environmental assault; pesticides and human health - acute poisoning - chronic poisoning; safety testing and approval - safety is a matter of opinion - safety tesing philosophy - toxicity tests - toxicity to humans - environmental toxicity - inadequacy of approval procedures; the politics of pesticide approval - science the equivocator - when politics rule safety - secrecy and trust; legislation and regulations - The Food and Environment Protection Act, 1985, Part 3 - Control of Pesticides Regulations, 1986 - The Pesticides (Maximum Residue Levels in Food) Regulations, 1988 - COSHH The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health - Food Safety Act, 1990 - general laws and regulations; food residues - minimizing residues in food production - what is a safe level of residue? - residues and the law - monitoring the food supply for pesticides; food industry response - the "Poisoned Harvest" survey of pesticide policy and action in industry - supermarkets as gatekeepers; Appendix A: how pesticides work. Appendix B: chemical families of pesticides.
