This article came from a study in 1991 which was followed up
intermittently through the years until 2002. It initially aimed to
explore farmers’ precautionary measures and willingness to pay
for PPE by introducing the use of masks and gloves to a random
sample of 162 farmers and labourers from the three study
villages of Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, Philippines: Lagare,
Caalibangbangan and Santa Arcadia.21 Labourers here referred
to hired agricultural farm workers.
In this study, black neoprene (chemical resistant) gloves and
dual-cartridge respirators designed for agricultural spray were
regarded as PPE in safeguarding farmers’ health. The masks
were recommended by pesticide applicators at International
Rice Research Institute (IRRI) as being the most important
piece of protective clothing while gloves were chosen being one
device that gives the most protection, as the hands are particularly
subject to pesticide exposure.21,
22
Data were gathered using a combination of quantitative and
qualitative methods such as semi-structured formal interviews,
informal interviews, focus groups, key informant interviews,
field observations and simulated market survey.