“Defensives” or “pesticides”? A history of the use and perception of pesticides in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, 1950-2002, Miguel Mundstock Xavier de Carvalho, Eunice Sueli Nodari and Rubens Onofre Nodari. Hist. cienc. saude-Manguinhos vol.24 no.1 Rio de Janeiro Jan./Mar. 2017
The article, written by Miguel Mundstock Xavier de Carvalho (Universidade Federal da Fronteira Sul), Eunice Sueli Nodari (Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina – UFSC) and Rubens Onofre Nodari (UFSC) presents a history of the use and perception of pesticides in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, between 1950 and 2002.
Brazil is currently the world’s leading consumer of pesticides. In the 1950s, due to some environmental disasters in the US linked to the use of pesticides, many publications, scientists, politicians, and organizations have warned that these substances can have adverse effects on human health and the environment.
The paper uses a range of primary sources, including technical newsletters, official reports, agricultural censuses, newspaper articles, data from the state center for toxicological information, and an interview with a key technician from the field.
It was found that the use and perception of pesticides went through different phases in Santa Catarina, with changes in attitude prompted both by the personal experiences of technicians and farmers and by the influence of the broader cultural context and circulation of environmentalist ideas starting in the 1980s.
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