Organic farming districts Oyam and Apac in Northern Uganda are in jeopardy due to the continual use of DDT spraying for IRS in these districts.Large quantities of DDT applied through spraying were spread through rain, wind and also carried on bicycles, tools, rodents and stored crops which had all been sprayed.  The organic companies that were affected by the spraying and who no longer can guarantee there produce is free from DDT include; Shares (U) Ltd and Bo Weevil (U) Ltd.  Due to the costs, time and efforts it would take to test the ten of thousands of single famers’ deliveries made to the storage centre of keep separate until results were returned, these companies and others such as Dunavant (U) Ltd, have vowed not to buy anything from the entire area for a period of 20 years or more.As a result, over 50,000 certified organic famers have lost their income due to the withdrawal of these companies.This is disastrous news in an area which has been unstable for more than 20 years due to the rebel activities.  DDT spraying is a major logistical problem for organic exporters because there is no mapping of the organic farmers in the two districts and most are scattered in different places making it difficult to prove that organic cotton came from an area that had not been sprayed.On December 9th 2009, the Ministry of Health in Uganda announced the ban of DDT IRS on national TV.  However, the announcement has not been published in any of the national print media/news papers.  Uganda Network of Toxic Free Malaria Control (UNETMAC) is continuing to lobby and fight to ensure that spraying of DDT is stopped once and for all.To learn more about DDT, visit the PAN - UK website www.pan-uk.org

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