(Beyond Pesticides, October 17, 2025) Earlier this week, on October 13, the fossil fuel industry, commodity crop groups, and their political allies celebrated Global Fertilizer Day. The industry is celebrating the widespread (and growing) use of petroleum products, including synthetic, nitrogen-based and fossil-fuel derived fertilizers. As a response to industry claims that petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers are critical to ensuring global food security, Beyond Pesticides and a broad coalition spanning civil society, scientists, farmers, farmworkers and working people are pushing back against toxic chemical dependency and advancing organic land (agricultural and nonagricultural) management as cost-effective, productive, and protective of health and the environment.   A review last year in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) highlights the urgent need to address the widespread chemical pollution stemming from the petrochemical industry, underscoring the dire implications for public health. Tracey Woodruff, PhD, author and professor at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), emphatically states, “We need to recognize the very real harm that petrochemicals are having on people’s health. Many of these fossil-fuel-based chemicals are endocrine disruptors, meaning they interfere with hormonal systems, and they are part of the disturbing rise in disease.” (Watch Dr. Woodruff’s talk to the 41st National Forum, Fossil Fuels […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 16, 2025) An important new study links pesticides, antibiotics, and nitrogen fertilizers to the extreme global crisis of antibiotic resistance, raising serious concerns about the adverse impacts of conventional (chemical-intensive) agricultural practices. The research team, from several Chinese universities and laboratories and Queen’s University in Belfast, conducted a three-year study in China using soil bacteria and phages (bacteriophages, or viruses that invade bacteria) from an experimental field, exposing them to a variety of conditions ranging from the control (no exposures) to various combinations of nitrogen fertilizer and two categories of pesticides (the insecticide chlorpyrifos and a blend of the fungicides azoxystrobin and propiconazole). Phages are viruses that eat bacteria. They invade the bacterial cell and, in various ways, cause the death of the bacterium. Some viral genes cause the cells to lyse, or dissolve, releasing their genetic material into the surrounding environment, where other organisms can pick up new genes. In this way, phages are a major pipeline for horizontal gene transfer (movement of genes in bacteria from one bacterial species to another) among microbes. This phenomenon is of increasing concern because the genes circulating in this marketplace include many that enhance antibiotic resistance. The researchers were […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 14, 2025) With escalating environmental, health, climate crises tied to petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers, Beyond Pesticides is calling the transition to organic land management a mandate, not a choice. Additionally, as a solution, organic agriculture has returned competitive yields with chemical-intensive farming and higher profitability. In this context, Beyond Pesticides and its network are supporting the Organic Science and Research Investment (OSRI) Act, S.1385 and H.R. 5703, to help grow the organic sector and are asking members of Congress to cosponsor the legislation. If passed, OSRI will make strategic investments into the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) organic agriculture research, assisting farmers to meet the growing demand for organic products and keep organic dollars circulating in rural and regional economies. The House and Senate bills include the same legislative language.  As the health, biodiversity, and climate crises escalate, Beyond Pesticides views organic agriculture and nonagricultural land management as a social good, necessary to a sustainable future. Given the dismantling of many federal environmental programs and the weakening or undermining of pesticide regulation, the transition to the organic alternative has taken on increased importance, according to public health and environmental advocates. The true cost of conventional, petrochemical pesticide and fertilizer use is integral to any calculation of the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 10-13, 2025) On Indigenous Peoples’ Day (Monday, October 13), Beyond Pesticides acknowledges that we recognize that the land we are situated on is the ancestral lands of the Ncothtank (Anacostan), and neighboring Piscataway and Pamunkey peoples, who have served as stewards for the region’s land, water, and air for generations. In reverence for the sovereignty and leadership of First Nations, and with respect for the wisdom of Indigenous peoples globally, environmental and public health advocates continue to advocate for the elimination of petrochemical-based pesticides and fertilizers, and the advancement of organic regenerative criteria that align with ecologically-based food and land management systems. This year, Indigenous Peoples’ Day falls on the petrochemical fertilizer industry-supported Global Fertilizer Day, which promotes synthetic fertilizers, rather than recognizing the value of agroecology—the shared understanding of the inextricable link that binds agricultural and ecological systems. Reflection of Turbulent U.S. Position on Indigenous Sovereignty The federal holiday on October 13, traditionally known as Columbus Day, has for many been reoriented to recognize that the “discovery” of the Americas was, in fact, an invasion of the Western hemisphere by European colonists who expropriated unceded land and devastated Indigenous cultures, self-governance, and ways of life. In […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 9, 2025) The 42nd National Forum Series, The Pesticide Threat to Environmental Health: Advancing Holistic Solutions Aligned with Nature—scheduled to begin on October 29, 2025, 1:00-3:30pm (Eastern time, US), will focus on aligning land management with nature in response to current chemical-intensive practices that pose a threat to health (see Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database), biodiversity, and climate. The virtual Forum is free to all participants. ➡️ Register here. The Call to the Forum, states: We are all affected by how land is managed, food is grown, and nature is protected. Different experiences and perspectives may bring us to care about health and the environment and the devastating adverse effects of pesticides and toxic substances. However, ensuring a livable future requires us to cultivate a collective concern about daily decisions on the management of our personal and community spaces, the practices used to grow the food we buy, and the care that we as a society give to complex and fragile interrelationships that sustain the natural world on which we depend.   The Pesticide Threat to Environmental Health: Advancing Holistic Solutions Aligned with Nature challenges participants—as concerned families, community residents, purchasers of products, advocates for policy, decision makers, and workers—to think […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 8, 2025) A study, Pesticides detected in two urban areas have implications for local butterfly conservation, published in partnership with researchers at Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, University of Binghamton (New York), and University of Nevada, reports widespread pesticide residues in the host plants of butterflies located in green spaces in the cities of Sacramento, California, and Albuquerque, New Mexico. Just 22 of the hundreds of collected samples had no detectable residues, with all other samples containing some combination of 47 compounds of the 94 tested pesticides in the plant tissue. Of the 47 compounds, 4 are neonicotinoid insecticides linked to adverse effects for bee and pollinator populations based on previous peer-reviewed research. The fungicide azoxystrobin and the insecticide chlorantraniliprole were detected at lethal/sublethal concentrations, according to the report authors. “Residential landscapes have high conservation potential for butterflies and other invertebrates,” says Aaron Anderson, co-lead author of the report and pesticide program specialist at Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. He continues: “But, these findings show how pervasive pesticide contamination can be in towns and cities, and underscore that protecting wildlife in these areas includes addressing pesticides.” The report’s results underscore the pervasiveness of pesticide drift and dispel the myth […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 6, 2025) [Comments are due by 11:59 pm ET on October 8, 2025.] As the public comment period for the upcoming National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) meeting closes on October 8 at 11:59pm, under consideration is an issue that goes to the heart of organic integrity—contamination-free compost. In response to a petition from the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI), a certifier of packaging and products for commercial composting, the NOSB’s Crops Subcommittee (CS) voted to keep synthetic compostable materials out of compost permitted in certified organic production. According to comments submitted by Beyond Pesticides, compost from plant and animal materials is of fundamental importance to organic practices. Composting is one way that organic growers meet the requirement in law to “foster soil fertility, primarily through the management of the organic content of the soil through proper tillage, crop rotation, and manuring.” The integrity of organic production has always been tied to the integrity of compost. Beyond Pesticides provides the public with comments on all the issues before the NOSB, which can be accessed here: Keeping Organic Strong and the Fall 2025 issues page. (The organization urges members of the public to copy and paste from the issues below or Fall 2025 […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 3, 2025) A study published in European Journal of Nutrition finds that consumption of organic animal-based and plant-based foods is positively associated with higher cognitive scores. Among women, there was both better cognitive function before testing (at baseline) and up to a 27 percent lower MCI [mild cognitive decline] score over the course of the study period for participants identifying as organic consumers, even if there was consumption of just one of the seven food categories. Over the 3.7-year study period, the authors conclude, “Our study found that organic food consumption was associated with higher cognitive scores for both sexes, yet the association with reduced incidence of MCI was observed exclusively in female participants.” While it is important to note that additional research is necessary to corroborate these results, these findings support the calls of environmental and public health advocates across the country who are calling for political leaders to take action by mandating organic-sourced meals for public institutions and programs, including National School Breakfast and School Lunch Program, hospitals, public universities, and other institutions. Background and Methodology The data for this study is drawn from robust datasets for the U.S. population, including 2012 data from University […]

(Beyond Pesticides, October 2, 2025) This year marks an advancement of various state-level neonicotinoid laws and regulations, including in Maine, Vermont, and Connecticut—emphasizing surging public support for pesticide reforms. The Maine legislature passed, and Governor Janet Mills (D-ME) signed into law on July 22, 2025, LD 1323, which commissions the Board of Pesticide Control to study the impacts of neonicotinoids and neonicotinoid-treated seeds, which advocates hope will help advance future legislation to prohibit the use, distribution, and sale of neonicotinoid insecticide products. Meanwhile, after years of grassroots advocacy, the Connecticut legislature advanced, and Governor Ned Lamont (D-CT) signed SB 9 into law, which will partially restrict the nonagricultural use of neonicotinoids on turfgrass, starting in 2027. There was a more comprehensive effort that failed to move forward (HB 6916), which would have gone further by restricting or prohibiting the use of neonicotinoids on trees, shrubs, and treated seeds (see here for Beyond Pesticides comments). Maine and Connecticut join eleven other states (California, Nevada, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, and Vermont) in taking steps to restrict or prohibit the use of neonicotinoids. (See Daily News here.) Whether it is a campaign to ban glyphosate, paraquat, chlorpyrifos, atrazine, or any […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 30, 2025)  A pioneering study has measured the concentrations of pesticides in clouds. Prior to this, rainwater has been tested and found to be a common depositor of pesticides. But there is far less information about the role of clouds themselves. The findings add to general scientific understanding that pesticides go everywhere: into soils, water bodies, and the bodies of plants and animals—even when they are not intentionally applied. There are many studies of pesticide concentrations, including their metabolites, so-called “inert” ingredients, and degradation products, in soil, water and the atmosphere. The study was published in Environmental Science & Technology last August by a team of scientists from the University of Clermont Auvergne and the Laboratoire Phytocontrol in France and the University of Torino in Italy. Clouds are collections of water droplets, as opposed to molecular gases or aerosols, which are simply fine particles or liquid droplets of any substance capable of becoming airborne. Aerosol and gas-phase chemicals are known to travel widely in the atmosphere and do not require the presence of water to do so. Contaminants in rain have been studied to some extent, but rain is a separate analytical category from clouds. A study […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 29, 2025) With the theme “Our Home Outdoors,” the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) launched National Public Lands Day this past Saturday—defining this year’s event as follows: “Our public lands are more than just places to visit—they are woven into the fabric of our everyday lives. From the trails we hike to the parks where we gather with family and friends, these spaces are our collective backyard, our shared front porch, our natural playground.” At the same time, people are asking their local governments whether they are using petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers on their parks and playing fields that are known to threaten the health of children, pets, wildlife, and the environment. Beyond Pesticides led a nationwide action to “Tell your local officials to make your parks organic.”  For those engaging with their local elected officials and parks departments, Beyond Pesticides, through its Parks for a Sustainable Future program, offers technical support to transition parks to organic land management through analysis of soil health, development of a plan to improve soil biology to cycle nutrients for healthy plants, training of staff to implement the organic plan, and ongoing consultation for plan adjustments when necessary. Organic systems focus […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 26, 2025) National Public Lands Day on Saturday, September 27—first established in 1994 and held on the fourth Saturday of September—is organized by the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) in partnership with the U.S. National Park Service and participating federal agencies. Events are planned at neighborhood, state, and national parks nationwide, and entrance to National Parks will be free for the day. Coinciding with National Organic Month, this year’s theme, ”Our Home Outdoors,” is explained by NEEF as: “Our public lands are more than just places to visit—they are woven into the fabric of our everyday lives. From the trails we hike to the parks where we gather with family and friends, these spaces are our collective backyard, our shared front porch, our natural playground.” Beyond Pesticides began its work on organic land management in national parks nearly a decade ago at National Historic Sites in Arkansas, Kansas, and Iowa. The program, now the Parks for a Sustainable Future program, partners with local communities in pursuit of a future where (1) public lands, from parks to playing fields, are managed without toxic pesticides, (2) children and pets are safe to run around on the grass, and (3) […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 25, 2025) Reinforcing numerous studies’ findings of widespread environmental contamination with PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), heavy metals, pesticide metabolites, and pharmaceuticals, researchers detected the chemicals in noncommercial backyard eggs laid in Greece, according to a study published in Science of The Total Environment. The researchers found that “[o]nly 9 out of 17 samples were compliant to the limit….set by the [European Union] for the sum of PFHxS [perfluorohexanesulfonic acid], PFOS [perfluorooctanesulfonic acid], PFOA [perfluorooctanoic acid], and PFNA [perfluorononanoic acid].” They continue: “[A]s regards PFOS, PFHxS, and PFNA, seven, six and one out of 17 samples, respectively, were above the ML (maximum limit) as set by the EU.” With current regulatory standards focused on evaluating exposure to individual chemicals and, in some instances, cumulative risk associated with chemicals that have a common mechanism of effect, this study points out the importance of looking at mixtures of chemicals and the potential synergistic effects. There are some fluorinated pesticides defined as PFAS due to their molecular structure and high toxicity, which makes the chemicals highly persistent in the environment. Center for Food Safety, Center for Biological Diversity, and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility reviewed the full list of active […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 23, 2025) A study published in European Journal of Agronomy, based on a 16-year, long-term experiment (LTE), finds that organic crops (cotton production with wheat and soybean rotations) in tropical climates are competitive with chemical-intensive (conventional) systems when evaluating systems’ resilience (to weather and insect resistance), input costs, and profitability. One of the underlying assumptions of continuous pesticide use is that they will continue to serve as effective weapons in the never-ending war against insects, weeds, and fungal diseases that threaten the economic viability and sustainability of the farming operations. While organic systems faced reduced yields due to pest pressures from pink bollworm infestations, their relative decline was much smaller than that of the chemical-intensive operations. This study’s findings indicate that a different direction is not only possible, but necessary, for the long-term financial viability of farms. Farmers understand that the health of the soil is a compounding investment that will help or hurt you depending on the actions taken yesterday, today, and tomorrow. The authors state in the study introduction that the long-term study is critical when studying organic productivity and profitability because short-term studies fail to capture. “Critical variables like soil health, pest dynamics, and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 22, 2025) Comments are due by 11:59 pm ET on October 8, 2025! When the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) meets twice a year, it is an opportunity for the public to weigh in on the integrity of organic standards, a process referred to among stakeholders as “continuous improvement.” There are major issues before the board at the upcoming October remote public hearing and in-person in November. As a means of taking on the challenges of health threats, biodiversity collapse, and the climate emergency, the review and updating of organic standards requires the public’s involvement in the current public comment period—to keep organic strong and continually improving.   The Fall National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) meeting is scheduled for November 4 – 6, 2025. The public meeting of the NOSB is preceded by an opportunity for public comments in writing and via online webinars on October 28 and 30, 2025, from 12 pm to 5 pm ET, that concern how organic food is produced. ℹ️ A draft meeting agenda is available here; a more detailed document with proposals and discussion documents is available here. Sign up for a 3-minute oral public comment timeslot by Wednesday, October 8! Remember, sign-ups fill up fast!  Written comments must […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 15, 2025) With residues of the widely used weed killer glyphosate (Roundupᵀᴹ) in the food supply long documented, scientific attention has turned to the synergistic effects of the weedkiller— a magnified effect greater than the individual chemical effects added together. The authors of an article in World’s Poultry Science Journal write, “The synergistic toxic effects of commercial glyphosate formulations and their bioaccumulation in animal tissues are often overlooked in current safety assessments.” Following up on a previous action, Beyond Pesticides is telling Congress and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that the agency must consider the effects of pesticides in the context in which they are used and promote the organic alternative.  Glyphosate residues in animal feed, as well as in water and through other exposure routes from food generally and residential areas, pose risks to both animal and human health, as these residues can bioaccumulate. As previously examined by Beyond Pesticides, the effects of pesticides are not limited to the crops to which they are applied. Synergistic effects of multiple chemical exposures are the rule, rather than the exception.   With poultry, the herbicide enters the production system through residues in genetically engineered feed. An earlier article in Scientific Reports concludes that glyphosate’s […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 12, 2025) A team of Argentinian researchers conducted a study published in Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology of the combined effects of the herbicide glyphosate and the pyrethroid insecticide cypermethrin. The researchers observed significantly higher apoptosis in cells exposed to the mixtures than to the individual pesticides—a synergistic response. Apoptosis, also known as programmed cell death, is a standard way that tissues handle damaged cells to remove threats to their function. The researchers sought to investigate the cellular toxicity of each chemical, individually and in combination, and assessed whether the effects of the mixture were additive or synergistic. Additive effects occur when two individual chemicals amplify the same sort of response, often because the chemicals have similar structures. Synergism can occur when chemicals have different mechanisms of action but work together to create more powerful effects. Mixtures of pesticides are the least-studied area of research conducted for regulatory purposes. While regulators provide instructions to applicators regarding which pesticides can be applied together and combined in tank mixtures, there is no control over how pesticides travel through the environment once applied, as they flow through the air as spray drift, lodge in soils and water, and are incorporated into […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 11, 2025) A study published in Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment finds organic rice paddies in the Mediterranean region have greater ecosystem biodiversity, including increased presence of aquatic microorganisms and insects, than their chemical-intensive counterparts. While not a “cradle-to-grave” or holistic analysis of organic vs. chemical-intensive agriculture (see a similar example in previous Daily News here), the authors note that there is an increase in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGe) associated with compost use, which replaces synthetic fertilizers. Typically, compost builds biological life in the soil and contributes to a drawing down (or sequestering) of atmospheric carbon. As EPA notes, “[C]omposting lowers greenhouse gases by improving carbon sequestration in the soil and by preventing methane emissions through aerobic decomposition, as methane-producing microbes are not active in the presence of oxygen.” The transition to organically produced rice in the U.S. has come with challenges. One includes thorny debates over the inclusion of copper sulfate on the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances, which establishes materials permitted for use in certified organic production under the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA). Under the law, USDA restricts copper sulfate in organic farming as follows: “For use as tadpole shrimp control in aquatic […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 10, 2025) After being criticized by the chemical industry and allied agribusiness and service industry groups on the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) report in May, the strategy document, released yesterday, has tamped down efforts to reform government programs that regulate pesticides. There are no specific recommendations on improving the regulation of pesticides. Rather, the strategy appears to embrace business-as-usual and could even ramp up government efforts to tout the need for pesticides and claims that current regulatory reviews are effective and comprehensive. In a section of the strategy entitled “Increasing Public Awareness and Knowledge,” the document says: “EPA, partnering with food and agricultural stakeholders, will work to ensure that the public has awareness and confidence in EPA’s pesticide robust review procedures and how that relates to the limiting of risk for users and the general public and informs continual improvement.” This is at odds with the earlier MAHA assessment report which identified pesticides as substances of concern that, citing deficiencies in chemical reviews, “may be neglecting potential synergistic effects and cumulative burdens, thereby missing opportunities to translate cumulative risk assessment into the clinical environment in meaningful ways.” While the earlier report, Make Our Children Healthy Again: Assessment, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 9, 2025) SprayDays California, the pesticide notification and mapping tool run by the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), was updated in late August after public backlash (including from farmworkers), which identified inadequate notice of pesticide use to those who work in or live in proximity to agricultural fields. According to a DPR press release from August 28, these changes include attempts to bring down barriers for users so that, in the words of DPR Director Karen Morrison, the department can “provide Californians with access to information and services.” While public health advocates view notification as a step that may allow people to leave a treatment area or take shelter to reduce exposure, groups continue to express concerns about a focus on notification to the exclusion of addressing the root causes of exposure—chemical-intensive agriculture, despite the viability of organic compatible practices and products. The groups criticize the continuous registration of pesticide active ingredients and product formulations without considering widely available practices and nonchemical and nature-based alternatives to pest management. These include regenerative organic principles and practices that draw inspiration from Indigenous land management and agroecological systems that have thrived in coexistence with nature. Recent Updates There are […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 8, 2025) Beyond Pesticides today called on Congress to require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to incorporate real world science into its evaluation of pesticide safety calculations by recognizing that daily exposure involves multiple chemicals and synergistic interactions— a magnified effect greater than the individual chemical effects added together. The organization cites numerous scientific studies that call public attention to this issue; that a realistic assessment of the human and environmental harm potentially caused by pesticides cannot be evaluated based on single-chemical, single-species tests. Given the numerous complexities associated with this type of assessment, the group points to organic land management in agriculture and residential areas as a more cost-effective approach, sending this message to Congress: EPA must consider the effects of pesticides in the context in which they are used and with reference to the organic alternative. A recent study, covered by Beyond Pesticides in its Daily News, found that the presence of Varroa mites in combination with the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid increases the risk of bee mortality and disrupts the larval gut microbiome. The study found synergy (a greater combined effect) between Varroa destructor, a parasitic mite that attacks and feeds on honey bees, and imidacloprid. The findings were published last […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 3, 2025) A study in Environmental Entomology shows that habitat and open space near agricultural fields become a killing field of pesticides, threatening biodiversity due to contamination from toxic drift. The study detected 42 pesticides, including several neonicotinoids, which are among the most lethal threats to pollinators. The research reveals the complexity of pesticide flow through the environment and the inadequacy of current methods of protecting nontarget organisms, including honey bees, bumblebees, and hundreds of other species of native bees worldwide. Their catastrophic declines is tied to pesticides in large part and highlights the inadequacy of current pesticide reduction strategies, such as integrated pest management (IPM) and now other loosely defined concepts like “regenerative,” in an attempt to protect the environment and nontarget organisms in chemical-dependent land management and agriculture. (See What the Science Shows on Biodiversity.) The researchers on the study, from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cornell University and Michigan State University, put silicone bands on fence posts in open areas adjacent to highbush blueberry fields on 15 farms in western Michigan. Silicone takes up chemicals in the atmosphere which can then be extracted and analyzed. The fence posts were placed at seven intervals ranging […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 2, 2025) It did not go without notice to U.S. grassroots environmental and public health advocates that earlier this month, over two million people in France signed a “first of its kind” petition that ultimately prevented the overturning of the country’s ban on bee-killing neonicotinoid insecticides. The action was widely covered in France, including in Le Monde. This uprising, organized by 23-year-old French master’s student Eleonore Pattery, emphasizes the importance of individuals in communities mobilizing people to protect the planet from pesticides that are having a devastating adverse effect on health and the environment. The grassroots push in France taps into a deep public concern about health and the environment that is emblematic of the level of public engagement needed to thwart the high level of chemical industry, agribusiness, and allied corporate influence that undermines basic protections. Industry interests have long been embedded in federal environmental and public health laws. For example, federal and state pesticide laws (the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act and similar state laws) allow widespread exposure to toxic chemicals despite the availability of nontoxic alternatives that are both efficacious and cost-effective. Without public engagement, as seen in France, significant improvements in law are constantly […]