LET’S STOP POISONING OUR OWN FOOD SYSTEMS
LET’S STOP POISONING OUR OWN FOOD SYSTEMS
We are supposed to be the smartest species on earth—and yet we may be the only one foolish enough to poison its own food system and call it “progress.”
No tiger sprays chemicals on its prey. No bird contaminates the worms it eats. Only humans do that. We lace our farms with pesticides, herbicides, and synthetic fertilizers, then wonder why cancer rates rise, why children are getting sick earlier, and why ecosystems are collapsing. And still, we insist this is the price of development.
The industrialization of agriculture—once proudly labeled the “Green Revolution”—did succeed in producing volume. But as we enter 2026, the bill has arrived. We are now borrowing today’s harvests from tomorrow’s health.
Chemicals do not simply stay on the surface of crops. They enter the soil, the water, the air, and eventually our bodies. Because we sit at the top of the food chain, we suffer from biomagnification: toxins accumulate as they move upward—from soil to plant, plant to animal, animal to human. What regulators often ignore is the cocktail effect: while limits are set for individual chemicals, no one seriously measures what happens when 15 or 20 residues coexist in one meal.
Many of these substances are endocrine disruptors. Even at extremely low doses, they mimic or block hormones, interfering with growth, fertility, metabolism, and brain development. Infants and children—whose organs are still forming—are the most vulnerable. If this were happening accidentally, we would call it a tragedy. But this is deliberate policy.
The environmental damage is just as alarming. Industrial farming treats soil as lifeless dirt rather than a living system. The result? Massive soil degradation, polluted waterways, and collapsing pollinator populations. Studies consistently show that organic and regenerative farms support up to 30 percent more pollinators and far greater biodiversity. That matters, because no bees means no food—no matter how much chemical fertilizer we pour.
The good news is that the wake-up call is finally being heard. Around the world, agriculture is pivoting toward regenerative practices. Farmers are rebuilding soil with cover crops and no-till methods, turning fields back into sponges that hold water and carbon. AI-guided “smart sprayers” now target individual weeds, cutting chemical use by as much as 90 percent. Biopesticides—using fungi and bacteria instead of poison—are expanding. Even crop science is shifting, using precision breeding to make plants naturally resistant rather than chemically dependent.
Governments are also waking up to the hidden costs. Cleaning contaminated groundwater and treating pesticide-linked diseases costs far more than the supposed savings of cheap, chemical-heavy food. Sustainable agriculture is no longer just an ethical choice; it is a survival strategy.
At the personal level, we are not powerless. Data shows that switching to a fully organic diet for just two weeks can reduce pesticide residues in the body by nearly 98 percent. If organic food is expensive, prioritize it for high-residue crops—the so-called “Dirty Dozen” like spinach, strawberries, grapes, and potatoes. Peel when necessary. Scrub under running water. Trim fat from meat, where chemicals often accumulate.
But let us be honest: individual choices are not enough.
The United Nations is the closest thing we have to a world government. If it cannot stop member states from poisoning the global food supply, what hope is there? And closer to home, what actions can we realistically expect from our own government? Will it protect public health—or continue protecting chemical profits?
Stopping the poison requires courage: from policymakers, from regulators, and from consumers. Because the truth is simple and uncomfortable—there is no such thing as cheap food. Someone always pays. And too often, that someone is us.
RAMON IKE V. SENERES
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