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Just and Sustainable Agriculture

More than 877 million pounds of pesticides are used in U.S. agricultural production each year. This overuse of toxic chemicals places human and environmental health at risk through the food we eat and the air we breathe.

The goal of our Just and Sustainable Agriculture program is to protect human and environmental health from toxic substances and practices utilized in industrial agriculture. Our objective, through increased awareness, education, and promotion of non-toxic agricultural practices is to create systemic change in the food production system that will reduce chemical-dependent agriculture in our environment, build healthy soil for climate resilience, and increase access to non-toxic foods.

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Supporting Local Solutions & Regenerative Agriculture

We connect farmers and community advocates across the state on collective strategies to pilot pesticide-free communities and transition North Carolina agriculture to a system that is equitable, healthy, profitable, and sustainable for all members of our community.

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Pollinator and Biodiversity Protection

One in every three bites of food we eat is dependent on pollinators. Without pollinators, both managed and native, we would not be able to enjoy many of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts that provide us nutrition every day.

Bee losses are the “canary in the coal mine” heralding sharp decreases in global insect populations, with recent studies pointing to 40% of global insect species under threat of extinction. Along with climate change and habitat loss, a primary factor of biodiversity decline is pesticide exposure. We must eliminate harmful pesticides from pollinator habitat while creating more spaces for them to forage. A few of our recent campaigns:

  • Support the Pollinator Protection Act! One class of pesticides implicated in pollinator decline is neonicotinoids, also known as neonics (pronounced neo-nics). In 2017 and 2019, we mobilized beekeeper allies to advocate for a state law limiting residential sale of neonic pesticides. The bill garnered bipartisan support and sponsorship.
  • Keep the Hives Alive! We proudly represent North Carolina on statewide, national, and international coalitions. For 2016, this meant helping organize the national Keep the Hives Alive campaign. This 10-stop tour across the country built awareness about pollinator decline and offered sound policy recommendations. Toxic Free NC was the point organization for taking the issue home to Bayer CropScience, the number one bee-killing pesticide producer, headquartered in Research Triangle Park. Check out a trailer for the documentary!
  • What’s in Our Water? The “insect apocalypse” and NC clean water concerns serve as conversation catalysts to illuminate the critical connections between petrochemical pesticide pollution, water contamination, biodiversity loss, and climate change. Through direct action, advocacy, and community engagement, we address the root causes of flawed regulatory science, strengthening community participation to support equitable policy solutions and stronger water quality standards based on rigorous, transparent, and inclusive science.

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Farmworker Health and Justice

The EPA Worker Protection Standard (WPS) was developed in 1992 to protect farmworkers and nursery workers from pesticide exposure. Toxic Free NC worked with farmworker advocacy groups from around the nation for over a decade to revise and strengthen the WPS. In September 2015, new revisions were adopted  with increased protection for workers, recordkeeping requirements for farm operators, and for the first time ever, a minimum age of 18 for pesticide handlers and applicators. We have now turned our eye to supporting enforcement of the new standards and watch-dogging potential rollbacks.