Assessments of Pesticide Utilization and Safety Practices Among Vegetable Crop Producers in the East Shewa Zone, Oromia, Ethiopia

Pesticide application poses risks to human health and the environment, potentially causing acute and chronic health effects, biodiversity loss, and harm to non-target organisms. Short-term adverse effects can include stinging eyes, rashes, blisters, nausea, and dizziness, and in severe cases, death. Long-term exposure can lead to various health problems, such as cancer, birth defects, reproductive harm, neurological and developmental toxicity, and disruption of the endocrine system. The aim of this study is to identify the factors affecting the adoption and intensity of pesticide safety practices among vegetable producer farmers in the East Shewa zone, Oromia region, Ethiopia. To conduct the study, primary data was collected from 120 randomly selected vegetable producers in the Ada’a and Dugda districts. Descriptive and economic statistics were used to analyze the data. The results indicated that only 36.67% of farmers used at least one piece of personal protective equipment during pesticide application, while 63.33% did not. Among the personal protective equipment (PPE) used, boots were the most common, followed by masks. The average adoption intensity of personal protective equipment was 0.14, which is very low. The results of the Tobit model indicated that the factors affecting the adoption decision and the level of adoption of pesticide safety practices were experience in pesticide application, knowledge of pesticide risks, availability of PPE in the market, distance of residence to a pesticide drug shop, frequency of extension contact, and provision of training related to chemical application. Various pesticide drug shops and concerned bodies should focus on improving communication and information on pesticide use. This could contribute to the improvement of pesticide safety practices in the study area.