by Heather Glock & Stephanie Sprague
by Heather Glock & Stephanie Sprague
On August 3, 1996 President Clinton signed into law the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA), changing the way the United States regulates pesticides. The FQPA mandates that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) consider the cumulative risk of pesticide exposure to infants and children. In an effort to provide the public with more information regarding pesticide residue on food and the potential risk, the FQPA includes a consumer “right-to-know” provision. The law requires the EPA to publish a pamphlet containing consumer-friendly information on the risks and benefits of pesticides, any threshold levels the EPA has established, and recommendations for reducing exposure to food-based pesticide residues. This information is to be updated and distributed each year to “large retail grocers for public display in a manner determined by the grocer.” The pamphlet was first distributed in summer 1999.
A team
of graduate students at the University of Michigan's School of Natural
Resources & Environment is evaluating the EPA's pesticide awareness
efforts. As a component of the Master's Project, Stephanie and I
will illustrate the EPA's efforts in our local area (Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti,
Michigan) to distribute information regarding pesticides on food.
Our analysis will include demographic information about the areas surrounding
the grocery stores.
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With EPA Brochure / Without EPA Brochure |
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