Steenhuisen says Agri Dept mulling alternatives to use of terbufos amid ban calls

DURBAN - Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen said that the department was still mulling alternatives to the use of terbufos, amid continued calls for the highly toxic agrochemical to be banned.

The spate of food poisoning cases in 2024 sparked national outrage about the handling of the pesticide and the lack of regulation on dangerous and sometimes deadly chemicals.

READ: A deep dive into toxic 'street pesticide' terbufos

Earlier in 2025, the South African Human Rights Commission lobbied Parliament’s portfolio committee on agriculture to drive the immediate ban of harmful pesticides, echoing calls by some civil organisations.

Steenhuisen addressed the matter again at the G20 agriculture working group currently underway in Durban.

Turbufos is outlawed in the European Union (EU) but is legally registered for agricultural use in South Africa.

Amid calls for a ban domestically as well, Steenhuisen had warned that banning the pesticide could lead to crop failure.

In 2024, six children from Naledi in Soweto were among the first of 23 children to die after ingesting food believed to be contaminated by the highly toxic agrochemical.

Steenhuisen has stuck to his guns for now, but said he hadn’t completely ruled out a ban in the near future in exchange for biological alternatives.

"And I think we’ve got to look at innovative ways that we can bridge farmers on using more environmentally friendly pesticides and inputs so that we can reduce, in the long term, the harmful effects of that."

In the meantime, he said stricter adherence to safety regulations, like the use of protective gear, are needed for farmworkers handling harmful pesticides to avoid contamination.