Introduction

There is an estimated 1.3 billion people in the globalagricultural sector, representing one in three ofall workers, and about 40 per cent of the globalworkforce (ILO, 2015a). In developing countries,agriculture remains the biggest employer of therural poor, and is one of the largest contributorsto national economic revenues. However, agricultureis also one of the most hazardous industriesworldwide, exposing farmers to both fatal andnon-fatal diseases and injuries. Agriculturalworkers are exposed to the weather, close contactwith animals and plants, extensive use of chemicaland biological products, difficult working posturesand lengthy hours, as well as hazardous agriculturaltools and machinery (Del Prado-Lu, 2011). The entirefarming community is often affected since farming isa household economy, and extended families residewithin the broader farm premises (NIOSH, 2013).

The International Labour Organization (ILO, 2015b) hasreported that at least 170,000 agricultural workersand farmers die annually, representing twice thefatality rate in other sectors of the labour economy(ILO, 2015b). Due to the difficulty of access toareas of investigation, absence of social and healthstatistics and the difficulty in establishing theepidemiology of disease causation, there isconsiderable under-reporting of statistics. Hence,actual occupational risks are greater than what isactually reported.

Farmers are among the occupational groups that sufferthe most from health risks as they are usuallyunprotected, poorly covered for health insurance,and experience more barriers in accessing healthcareservices and programmes (Holden and Jacobson, 2013;IBON, 2017). Addressing the long-term impact ofstructural factors on the health of certainpopulation groups is an ongoing challenge. There aremultiple means of harm involving farming lifestyles,including physical (for example, sun radiation ornoise), chemical (for example, dusts orfertilisers), biological (for example, bacteria orparasites) and ergonomic (for example,musculoskeletal disorders or injuries). However,exposure to pesticides in particular has been shownto cause adverse health effects among farmers (ILO,2015a).

This chapter on the health risks of farmers and farmingcommunities is essential in exploring further thephenomenon of food crime. The production ofagricultural products and food crops is inimical tothe health and safety of those who produce them.This is an ironic situation, where the providers ofagricultural crops – farmers – become vulnerable,ill, injured, disabled or even die in the process ofagricultural production.