Grimbuhler Sonia, Viel Jean-François
INRAE, National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment, ITAP Research Team "Technologies and Methods for the Agriculture of Tomorrow", Institut Agro, Univ Montpellier, Montpellier, France.
Univ Rennes, CHU Rennes, Inserm, EHESP, Irset (Institut de Recherche en Santé, Environnement et Travail) - UMR_S 1085, Rennes, France.
PLoS One. 2025 Jul 18;20(7):e0328161. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0328161. eCollection 2025.
Reducing pesticide exposure in agricultural activities remains a major challenge, particularly for crops that rely heavily on pesticides, such as fruits and vegetables. Integrated pest management technology requires a strong safety culture to effectively reduce pesticide use. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of mandatory safety training on the knowledge and perceptions of pesticide use among French fruit and vegetable farmers and farm workers.
Farmers throughout France were approached during mandatory training for pesticide-related activities. Trainees were asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire that included demographic and occupational data as well as a safety climate scale specifically designed for the agricultural sector. A total of 182 farm managers or workers involved in fruit cultivation and 164 involved in vegetable cultivation completed the questionnaire at the beginning and end of the session, enabling us to compare pre- and post-training scores using a multiple measures design. Statistical analyses were conducted using paired t-tests and mixed models for repeated measures.
We noted increases in global safety climate scores (8.2% and 8.6% among fruit and vegetable producers, respectively; p < 0.001) and each of their seven dimension scores after trainees completed the course. The largest increases among fruit producers were observed in the communication and feedback, and the knowledge dimensions (16.6% and 8.6%, respectively; p < 0.001). Among vegetable producers the greatest improvements were found in the communication and feedback, and the teamwork climate dimensions (14.9% and 9.4%, respectively; p < 0.001). Score improvements remained highly significant in multivariate analyses, as few covariate-by-time interactions were found.
This study demonstrates that pesticide training significantly enhances the safety climate perception among French fruit and vegetable producers. The long-term effects of this intervention should be evaluated, with the ultimate goal of reducing risks to human health and the environment.
减少农业活动中的农药暴露仍然是一项重大挑战，特别是对于严重依赖农药的作物，如水果和蔬菜。综合害虫管理技术需要强大的安全文化来有效减少农药使用。本研究的目的是评估强制性安全培训对法国水果和蔬菜种植农户及农场工人农药使用知识和认知的影响。
在法国各地，对参加与农药相关活动的强制性培训的农户进行了调查。要求学员填写一份自填式问卷，其中包括人口统计学和职业数据，以及专门为农业部门设计的安全氛围量表。共有182名参与水果种植的农场经理或工人以及164名参与蔬菜种植的人员在培训开始和结束时完成了问卷，这使我们能够使用多重测量设计比较培训前后的得分。使用配对t检验和重复测量的混合模型进行统计分析。
我们注意到，在学员完成课程后，整体安全氛围得分有所提高（水果和蔬菜生产者中分别提高了8.2%和8.6%；p<0.001），以及其七个维度得分均有所提高。水果生产者中，沟通与反馈以及知识维度的得分提高幅度最大（分别为16.6%和8.6%；p<0.001）。蔬菜生产者中，沟通与反馈以及团队合作氛围维度的改善最为显著（分别为14.9%和9.4%；p<0.001）。在多变量分析中，得分改善仍然非常显著，因为几乎没有发现协变量与时间的交互作用。
本研究表明，农药培训显著提高了法国水果和蔬菜生产者对安全氛围的认知。应评估这一干预措施的长期效果，最终目标是降低对人类健康和环境的风险。
