Syngenta defends atrazine in farm state newspaper ads

Swiss chemical giant terms farmers who use atrazine "real-world environmentalists."

Leigh Pomeroy

Why is the giant chemical company Syngenta placing half-page ads defending atrazine in the Mankato Free Press at a cost of nearly $1500 each ?

Most Free Press readers have probably never heard of atrazine, let alone know that it is one of the most controversial — and dangerous — herbicides on the market.

Yet Syngenta wants us to believe that corn farmers across Minnesota who use the chemical are, in the company's words, "real-world environmentalists."

Yet if atrazine is so environmentally safe, why is it banned throughout the European Union? And why has the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency set its Maximum Contaminant Level in public water systems at 3 parts per billion? To give a relevant measure, that's like one can of beer among 41,666,667 cases — in other words, a minuscule amount.

But why?

"Atrazine results in the demasculinization -- chemical castration -- of male frogs, and subsequent feminization," says University of California biologist Dr. Tyrone Hayes. In humans, he continues, "Atrazine is associated with breast and prostate cancer and low sperm count."

Furthermore, atrazine can stop photosynthesis in phytoplankton in waterways, placing the base of the food chain in jeopardy, according to researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Nevertheless, the EPA has determined that atrazine is still safe to use in the U.S., a decision based in part on research funded by — guess who? — Syngenta.

Are farmers who use atrazine "real-world environmentalists" as Syngenta claims? Or are they victims, along with the rest of us, of giant chemical companies (in collusion with our government) whose goal is to place profits over the health of people and the planet?

More information below:

• "Another PCA whistleblower suit" — Minnesota Environmental Partnership
• "Arlington Farmers Pay Penalty for Illegal Use of Atrazine" — Wisconsin Ag Connection
• "Chemical Industry Pressures EPA to Protect Herbicide, not Wildlife" — Union of Concerned Scientists
• "Crops and children suffer most from pesticide combinations" — Australian Food News
• "Whistleblower Wotzka, legislators and researcher put Atrazine back in spotlight" — Twin Cities Daily Planet