POLICE are to visit farms and agricultural suppliers to warn about the dangers illegal and counterfeit pesticides pose to the food chain and human health.
The two-week drive is in response to an emerging threat in Europe that has seen the loss of farmland in Poland worth €3 million (£2.5m), Police Scotland said.
Officers will work with Trading Standards, HMRC and the Health and Safety Executive to raise awareness of the threats chemicals pose to farmers and workers.
It is part of a European-wide campaign co-ordinated by Europol against the trade, which police say is run by serious and organised criminals who are targeting a global market of illegal pesticides estimated to be worth €4.4 billion (£3.7bn).
About 10 per cent of all pesticides in use throughout Europe are thought to be illicit or counterfeit and their use poses serious human health risks and environmental damage by polluting water courses with potentially toxic chemicals. Their use can also have serious implications for wildlife and the environment.
Chief Superintendent Barry McEwan, head of Police Scotland’s safer communities division, said that so far the problem did not appear to have spread to Scotland, but added: “We are keen to prevent this happening and the public should be in no doubt that the same criminal networks who import, distribute and sell counterfeit and illicit goods in our communities may see a commercial opportunity and explore it for profit without considering the harm.”
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