Although the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) won't releaseits report on Risk Assessment Methods for Pesticides in theDiets of Infants and Children until Tuesday, interested partiesare already going on record in favor of a broad pesticide phase-out agenda.

Supporters of the plan range from President Clinton to theWorld Wildlife Fund, from the EPA to the Farmworkers JusticeFund, from the FDA to the Consumers Union, and from theUSDA to biopesticide innovator Mycogen Corp.

On Friday, the Clinton administration announced itscommitment to reducing the use of pesticides and to promotingsustainable agriculture. And the three government agenciesresponsible for implementing Clinton's commitment -- the U.S.Department of Agriculture (USDA), the EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA) and the Food and Drug Administration(FDA) -- issued a joint statement confirming that they "standbehind the safety of the food supply and will continue to bevigilant in (our) efforts to maintain that safety based on thebest available science."

The triumvirate also stated that it plans to "review andconsider all of the recommendations made in the reports beingissued." The NAS report was commissioned by the EPA.

The agencies went on to state that, among other goals, "we willintensify our effort to reduce the use of higher-risk pesticidesand to promote integrated pest management, includingbiological and cultural control systems and other sustainableagricultural practices, under the leadership of the USDA."

Also anticipating the concerns that could be raised by the NASreport was Jerry Caulder, president and chief executive officerof San Diego-based Mycogen Corp. (NASDAQ:MYCO). In astatement on Friday, Caulder outlined his proposals for federalregulatory initiatives to accelerate the introduction of reduced-risk crop protection products, emphasizing biologicalalternatives to chemical pesticides.

Caulder offered these same proposals in more detail on June 10to the Subcommittee on Department Operations and Nutritionof the House Agriculture Committee, according to Mike Sund,Mycogen's director of corporate communications.

Caulder's six-point program for the EPA includes:

-- Designating a unit of qualified scientific reviewersspecifically dedicated to reviewing reduced-risk pest-controlagents;

-- Streamlining the review process for reduced-risk pestcontrol agents and setting mandatory deadlines for response tofield testing and registration applications;

-- Coupling the re-registration review of existing chemicalproducts that are likely to be denied with applications forreduced-risk products targeting the same pests;

-- Allowing reduced-risk pesticides to declare factualinformation about their safety and environmental compatibilityon product labels and in advertising;

-- Developing a joint program with the USDA Extension toeducate pesticide users about the benefits of proper use ofreduced-risk pest control approaches; and

-- Exempting users of reduced-risk pest control agents frominappropriate requirements and restrictions that have beenenacted to control the purchase, storage, application anddisposal of synthetic chemical pesticides.

"The current debate over pesticides is one-sided, centering onthe risks of chemical products rather than on the availability ofreduced-risk alternatives," Caulder said. "EPA and other publicagencies and officials have an opportunity to broaden thatfocus to promote solutions as well as addressing problems."

-- Jennifer Van Brunt Senior Editor

(c) 1997 American Health Consultants. All rights reserved.