This People’s Tribunal is the culmination of many years of advocating for our government to update the outdated regulatory framework and to phase out the most poisonous agrotoxins. When our letters of demand, objections, petitions, protests, and campaigns fell on deaf ears, we reached exhaustion of remedies. Here is an outline of our advocacy to date.
In December 2024, a coalition of civil society organisations and unions sent a letter of demand to the Minister of Agriculture, Mr John Steenhuisen, and a press release, requiring him to immediately ban the lethal chemical Terbufos and put in place a plan for the banning of other highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs).
The deadline for the Minister to respond was 28 February 2025, which has now passed.
We put the Minister under notice that failure to respond would result in legal action being taken. Watch this space for updates!
Among our demands were a call for:
- Accountability and cohesion, with consequences for authorities that have failed to ensure regulatory oversight and enforcement, and cohesive policy to support inter-governmental regulation and enforcement.
- Charting a route out of toxic agricultural practices with a pesticide reduction policy and measures to replace these toxins with benign alternatives and environmentally safe and sound agricultural methodologies.
- Inclusive, transparent decision-making with an end to self-regulation for industry. This should include a publicly accessible database of chemicals registered in South Africa as well as a database of all HHPs.
Two months earlier, in October, six children had tragically died from Terbufos poisoning, after eating snacks bought at a spaza shop in Soweto. This HHP has been banned in the European Union since 2009 and is a “restricted agricultural remedy” in South Africa, which requires specific labelling. By December, the number of people having died from HHPs was at least 22 – many of whom were children from impoverished neighbourhoods.
Spaza shop owners were scapegoated by the government and the chemical industry in an attempt to avoid taking responsibility for their failure to ensure product stewardship of their toxic chemicals through their lifetime, as required by the National Environmental Management Act. Thus, in November, organisations also came together to draw up a petition to call on the government to ban Terbufos.
This led to a petition initiated in November, calling on the government to ban Terbufos with immediate effect and institute mechanisms for banning all HHPs within three months. Our demands also included calling on government to stop blaming spazas for its failure and to ban aerial spraying of pesticides, as recommended by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights, Dr Marcus Orellana. We also called on the government to establish an independent inquiry into the structural causes and the role of industry in the cases of pesticide poisoning.
This petition is still live and you can sign on by following the link below.
Our most recent follow up was sent to the Minister of Agriculture on 26 November, 2026.
Submission regarding Government intention to ban Terbufos
Here is our submission on 26 February 2026 to the Ministry of Agriculture, welcoming the formal announcement of the ban on Terubos and calling for decisive follow-through. The ongoing availability of Terbufos in informal markets points to systemic regulatory failure, not isolated stewardship breaches. SAPToA’s community documentation—corroborated by expert analysis from Profs. London and Rother—show persistent gaps in monitoring, enforcement, supply chain control, and industry compliance. These failures are not accidental; they are structural and long-standing, reflecting weaknesses in the framework of Act 36 of 1947. Without a fundamental overhaul of the pesticide registration, monitoring, and enforcement regime, similar crises will recur even after Terbufos is banned.
Letter of Demand: Ban Terbufos and HHPs or face legal action, Minister Steenhuisen
Here is the letter of demand to SA Minister of Agriculture, John Steenhyuisen, requiring him to immediately ban the lethal chemical Terbufos, and to put in place a plan for the banning of other highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs).
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Press Release: Civil society coalition says heads must roll for Terbufos regulatory failure
Our letter of submission was followed with a press release, where we noted that Minister Steenhuisen has a Constitutional obligation to issue a ban on Terbufos immediately, and other HHPs within six months, to protect the right to life and right to a healthy environment for South Africans, especially farm workers who are subjected to excessive and dangerous exposure.
Sign the petition: Ban Terbufos with immediate effect, and all HHPs within three months
Coalition condemns regulatory failures after the deaths of six children and calls for an immediate ban on highly hazardous pesticides in South Africa. The South African government and chemical industry must be held to account for deaths and serious illnesses from toxic pesticides on the farm and in food. Click here to read more and endorse.
The Women on Farms Project (WFP)also have an active petition, as part of their campaign to end the Double Standards, which calls on the government to ban all HHPs that have already been banned in the EU. WFP launched its campaign in 2019, initially demanding that government ban 67 HHPs, many of which are still produced and exported to SA by the EU, even though these pesticides are banned for use on their own soil due to their harmful effects on human health.
You can sign the petition below.
The principal legislative framework for the governance of pesticides is the Fertilisers, Farm Feeds, Agricultural Remedies and Stock Remedies Act, 1947 (Act No. 36 of 1947), which has barely changed in 74 years. Meanwhile, the agricultural sector has radically grown, as has the number of pesticides used in our country. In November 2024, the SAPToA submitted extensive comments to the amended Regulations of this Act. In addition to detailed comments on the various sections, our concluding recommendations included calling for a just transition out of toxic agricultural practices towards a pesticide-free future and moving from a risk assessment approach to a precautionary approach with regard to approvals. We also reiterated our demand that the government ban with immediate effect all chemicals on the WHO1(a) and WHO1(b) list as well as chemicals already prohibited in their country of origin.
End the Double Standards: Ban Deadly Pesticides Already Banned in Europe
The Double Standards Pesticides Campaign calls on the South African government to ban all HHPs that have already been banned in the EU. Farm workers and dwellers need your support to exert pressure on Minister Steenhuisen.
SAPToA's comments on amendments to Regs of outdated pesticide Act
SAPToA strongly urges SA government to put in place a plan to phase out toxic pesticides and move towards agricultural practices that are more harmonious with nature, in these comments on amendments to the regulations of our antiquated pesticide regulatory law.
Persveklaring: Stop chemiese oorlog teen die plaaswerkers en hul kinders!
Die wetgewing bied bloot 'n skans van veiligheid, wat 'n hoogs giftige, gevaarlike en vernietigende praktyk en industrie vermom.
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