From usage norms to practices: tensions surrounding pesticides in Ivorian cocoa farming
Abstract
This article examines pesticide use in Ivorian cocoa farming through an ethnographic study conducted in two contrasting production areas. Drawing on an analytical framework combining the anthropology of public policy, the sociology of ignorance, and environmental justice, it explores the gap between pesticide reduction policies and farmers’ situated practices. Findings show that the growing specialization of pesticide applicators, promoted through training programs, does not reduce exposure but rather redistributes and concentrates it among specific individuals, while maintaining diffuse forms of co-exposure and self-exposure. At the same time, farmers develop locally grounded practices of protection and care based on experiential knowledge (such as the use of shea butter, milk, or lemon), which enable them to manage uncertainty without reducing exposure. The study also highlights the central role of economic constraints in shaping pesticide use. In a context of high vulnerability, securing yields takes precedence over long-term health risks, and product effectiveness is assessed through immediate, sensory-based criteria often associated with perceived toxicity. The article argues that ignorance should not be understood as a lack of knowledge but rather as a social and political phenomenon, resulting from working conditions and risk management systems. It shows that pesticide reduction policies tend to redistribute exposure rather than eliminate it, thereby revealing persistent inequalities within global agricultural value chains.
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BibTeX
@article{reyes2026from,
title = {{From usage norms to practices: tensions surrounding pesticides in Ivorian cocoa farming}},
author = {Nastassia Reyes and Stéphanie Owoadé and Constant Yves Adou Yao and Loreleï Guéry},
journal = {Cahiers Agricultures},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1051/cagri/2026015},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05840884v1},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - From usage norms to practices: tensions surrounding pesticides in Ivorian cocoa farming
AU - Nastassia Reyes
AU - Stéphanie Owoadé
AU - Constant Yves Adou Yao
AU - Loreleï Guéry
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/07
JO - Cahiers Agricultures
DO - 10.1051/cagri/2026015
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05840884v1
AB - This article examines pesticide use in Ivorian cocoa farming through an ethnographic study conducted in two contrasting production areas. Drawing on an analytical framework combining the anthropology of public policy, the sociology of ignorance, and environmental justice, it explores the gap between pesticide reduction policies and farmers’ situated practices. Findings show that the growing specialization of pesticide applicators, promoted through training programs, does not reduce exposure but rather redistributes and concentrates it among specific individuals, while maintaining diffuse forms of co-exposure and self-exposure. At the same time, farmers develop locally grounded practices of protection and care based on experiential knowledge (such as the use of shea butter, milk, or lemon), which enable them to manage uncertainty without reducing exposure. The study also highlights the central role of economic constraints in shaping pesticide use. In a context of high vulnerability, securing yields takes precedence over long-term health risks, and product effectiveness is assessed through immediate, sensory-based criteria often associated with perceived toxicity. The article argues that ignorance should not be understood as a lack of knowledge but rather as a social and political phenomenon, resulting from working conditions and risk management systems. It shows that pesticide reduction policies tend to redistribute exposure rather than eliminate it, thereby revealing persistent inequalities within global agricultural value chains.
SN - 1166-7699
SN - 1777-5949
ER -