August 8, 1999
Mr. William H. Bryan,
President
Mt. Olive Pickle Company, Inc.
P.O. Box 609
Mt. Olive, North Carolina 28365
Dear Bill:
This is a response to your request for information about
pesticide laws relating to farm workers in North Carolina.
The Farm Labor Organizing Committee, an Ohio-based farm worker
labor union, alleges that the "conditions of farm workers
in North Carolina are among the poorest and most oppressive of
anywhere in the nation." We at the North Carolina
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services feel that this
is an unfair and unsubstantiated attack on North Carolina
agriculture. FLOC's general characterizations have no
statistical basis. We also strongly disagree with statements
from the Ohio Sierra club that our pesticide laws are not
being enforced. Our Pesticide Section has been enforcing
worker protection standards for many years. When the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency adopted worker protection
standards several years ago, our Pesticide Board was one of
the first in the country to adopt these standards by
reference. The USEPA has officially recognized our agency as
the primary enforcement authority for pesticide laws within
the State of North Carolina.
We have a very active enforcement program, with inspectors
covering the entire state. Their fieldwork is backed up by a
modern pesticide residue laboratory capable of identifying
pesticides at the lowest detectable levels.
The Pesticide Board routinely takes regulatory action in the
form of civil penalties and license suspensions at their
monthly meetings. Very few cases involve farm worker exposure
to pesticides. We have attempted to make our farmers aware of
their obligations under the pesticide law, and we believe that
most of them recognize the importance of safety in using
agricultural chemicals.
Our pesticide program records are open to public inspection,
and we will be glad to answer any questions about this
program.
Please let me know if we can provide further information.
With all good wishes.
