DEADLY MIST (Nicaragua, 2005)

In the 1970s and ’80s the banana producers Dole and Del Monte were using Nemagon, a carcino-genic pesticide, to combat microscopic worms on banana and pineapple plants. Those who worked for them at the time now suffer from various illnesses, including testicular and cervical cancer, kid-ney disease, brittle bones and sharply reduced visual capability. Moreover, there is an increased chance of birth defects among their children. The banañeros, now in their fifties, have little pros-pect of recovery – to the extent that there are any cures at all for their medical conditions. They have no money for treatment and the corporations responsible wash their hands of the matter, pro-claiming their innocence. Dole and Del Monte refuse to acknowledge judgements by the Nicara-guan courts, although it was known from as far back as the 1950s that Nemagon caused similar conditions among rats in laboratory tests. In 1977 the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) or-dered American firms to cease using Nemagon, but Dole and Del Monte continued to use the prod-uct for years more on their plantations in Nicaragua and The Philippines, so that tens of thousands of workers were unnecessarily exposed to the damaging substance.