The protective equipment indicated for using phytosanitary products

The products plant protection products are those used as pesticides, substances that have been created to prevent or kill different elements or bacteria that may be present in the environment and that may be harmful to agriculture and/or public health.

They can be used to kill all kinds of insects (insecticides), bacteria (antibiotics and bactericides), weeds (herbicides), mites (acaricides), fungi (fungicides), molluscs (molluscicides) or rodents (rodenticides), among others plant protection products desiccants, defoliants and substances designed to regulate plant growth.

All workers dealing with this type of product should make use of appropriate Personal protective equipment (EPIs) to ensure their safety, depending on the choice of one or the other depending on the toxicity of the plant protection product, the time of exposure and the form of exposure, keeping in mind that the main routes of entry into the body are the respiratory and dermal routes.

The use of PPE is essential to reduce the level of exposure to these products and therefore to minimise the possibility of worker intoxication.

PPE for the use of plant protection products

When manipulating plant protection products the use of Personal protective equipment how are they gloves, which must meet a number of characteristics such as:

• impermeable to aqueous and oily solutions;
• protection against organic solvents;
• mechanical resistance to abrasion, cuts and perforations ...;
• ergonomic, flexible and comfortable, among others.

After use, it is recommended to wash hands thoroughly and to wash the gloves both inside and out, allowing them to dry with the fingers up, measures that help prevent possible problems with these products that can be very harmful to health.

As regards the work clothes for the protection of plant protection products, these work uniforms they must offer protection against chemicals, mainly liquids. A material that meets the permeability and penetration requirements of the substance to be used should be selected, with Type 4 and Type 6 being the most recommended. In addition these protective clothing must bear the CE marking on the label, which implies their approval.

It is also necessary to use protective boots suitable, closed, impermeable and as high as possible, made of rubber and not dripping to prevent the inside tissue from becoming impregnated by the product used.