The vegetables we consume come laden with harmful pesticides—and dangerous amounts of them. Following reports of pesticide residue (95.27 percent) in long yard beans and bitter gourds (75 percent) published recently, government lab tests flagged broccoli for hazardous levels (93.91 percent) of organophosphate pesticide, a banned chemical that can damage the nervous system. Moreover, this January alone, 600 kilograms of excessively chemical-laced leafy greens were thrown away from Kalimati, the country’s largest wholesale vegetable market in Kathmandu. As per the country’s Rapid Bioassay of Pesticide Residue Analysis Unit, veggies that exceed 45 percent residue level are dangerous to consume; and anything between 35 and 45 percent may be edible only after a specific period. Yet the trend of using chemicals has not stopped, nor has efforts to control their use been satisfactory, suggesting the state’s apathy to protecting public health.

Farmers are turning nature’s bounty into poison—knowingly or unknowingly. Chemicals accelerate the growth of veggies and also keep off pests. Thanks to climate change, the emergence of new insects has made the indiscriminate use of chemicals rife. Concomitantly, many farmers are unaware that spraying pesticides on vegetables before harvest leads to high residue levels. Many do this only to keep their produce fresh for higher profits. But then the authorities’ neglect has only exacerbated the problem. Banned chemicals like organophosphate and carbamate are readily available in markets, as regulatory bodies have fallen far short of containing them. The country has banned 50 to 60 percent of pesticides under the organophosphate group, but law enforcement is lax.

The World Health Organisation warns that pesticides can have both immediate and chronic health effects, depending on the level and duration of exposure. Studies show that acute health effects include skin burning, rashes, blisters, blindness, diarrhoea and even death. Among chronic effects are cancers of various kinds, paralysis, birth defects, heart and lung diseases, and nervous system damage. Children are more vulnerable to pesticides due to their developing nervous and immune systems. Further, farmers who are often exposed to such chemicals are at a greater risk. Besides human health, pesticides do irreversible damage to the environment, the soil and other beneficial soil microbes.

If this indiscriminate use of pesticides continues, it could lead to a public health crisis. There can be measures to prevent the vegetables treated with high pesticide levels from entering our kitchens and bodies. This initiative must start with opening more laboratories and having enough manpower to test for such pesticides in vegetables, in all seven provinces. Then comes the part of enforcing the law. Likewise, while farmers’ role in the misuse of pesticides cannot be ignored, many of them also lack awareness on the issue. It is up to the local governments to educate them on the right use of chemicals to control pest damage.

At a time when other countries are transitioning to more organic farming practices and pest control methods, Nepal has been increasing pesticide imports year after year—for instance, it imported 1,183 tonnes in the fiscal year 2023-24, compared to 1,135 tonnes in 2022-23. This neglect puts at risk the lives and wellbeing of perhaps each and every Nepali living in the country.