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Naturally, the law does not please everyone. Some would prohibit all 

 pesticide: usage on food - let the bugs get fat and the people go hungry rather than 

 use these "dangerous" chemicals. Others see the law as too restrictive, burdensome, 

 perhaps unfair. However, those who have follovired closely the developments in pesti- 

 cides, public attitudes, trends in pest control and legislative proposals, generally 

 agree that this present law is the fairest, most liberal and at the same time the 

 most effective obtainable. 



Do You Understand These Terms ? 



The terms "pesticide" or "pesticide chemical" refer to any one substance of mixture 

 intended for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any insects , rodents , 

 fungi , weeds , and other forms of plant or animal life or viruses (not viruses in or 

 on man or animals) recognized as pests and which is used in the production, storage 

 or transportation of raw agricultural commodities. These pesticides are "economic 

 poisons". Weed killers, rat killers, insecticides, fungicides, etc, are included* 



The term "raw agricultural commodity" means any food in its fresh natural state. 

 It includes all fruits and vegetables, grains, nuts, eggs, meat, raw milk, and simi- 

 lar produce. Fruits and vegetables that have been washed, colored, stripped of outer 

 leaves, waxed, prepackaged, or prepared into fresh salads are included in this defini- 

 tion^ everything that you may produce or market before it is frozen, canned, cooked 

 or processed in any way, 



"Residue tolerance" means the amount of a pesticide residue allowable on 

 fresh farm produce when ready for interstate shipment. Tolerances are expressed as 

 "parts per million" in or on the product. Individual pesticides are given tolerances 

 which must not be exceeded. Examples are DDT, parathion and chlordane with residue 

 tolerances of 7,0, 1,0 and 0,3 ppm respectively on the crops for i/riiich these limits 

 have been established, 



VOiere several related pesticides are used on a crop, the entire residue 

 situation must be considered as well as the residues of each individual material, 

 Dieldrin, methoxychlor, DDT and TDE represent a group of related insecticdesj ziram, 

 zineb and ferbam are related fungicides. 



Some pesticides have a "zero tolerance". This means that none of such materials 

 may remain in or en the raw agricultural product, Mercxiry compounds and TEPP are ex- 

 amples , 



Seme materials have been "exempted". This means that use of these pesticides 

 according to the usual, good, farming practices, does not create a residue hazard - 

 no tolerance figure is needed because the residues commonly present are not harmful. 

 The copper fungicides, rotenone, ryania, and pyrethrum come within this group* 



What Does It All Mean? 



Just this I All raw(fresh) farm produce moving interstate after July 22,19^5 

 will be subject to federal inspection for pesticide residues (states may decide to 

 set. up similar inspections locally). Such produce can be condemned or confiscated if 

 if found to carry, or to contain, pesticide residues exceeding the established toler- 

 ances. 



The same thing can happen if the product carries the residue of a material 

 for which nc "tolerance" or "exemption" has been established as yet. 



