Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation

Research Compendium 1993 - 1994

Research Project

BETTER COMMUNICATION OF INFORMATION ON CHEMICAL LABELS

Objectives

To determine:

• how farmers currently gain information from chemical labels;
• how readily farmers recognise the meaning of graphic symbols related to chemical use; and
• how to overcome limitations to the effective communication of label information.

Background

The safe use of chemicals relies on users being willing and able to read and understand agricultural chemical labels. Preliminary observations suggest that labels are too complex in presentation and language.

Research

Surveys and controlled experiments were employed and two widely used chemicals with markedly different toxicities selected. These were glyphosate, which is only slightly toxic, and paraquat, which is highly toxic. A set of pictograms was obtained from GIFAP (the international association of manufacturers of agrochemicals).

Outcome

Farmers were clearly of the opinion that pictograms add to the ease of obtaining information from chemical labels. However, the effect of pictograms in improving the communication of information was incomplete. Even if pictograms present safety information to chemical users in a way that is easier for them to understand, changed behaviour will not necessarily follow.

Until chemical users become familiar with pictograms, it will be difficult to test whether pictograms will change the way chemical users read chemical labels.

RIRDC Project No: DAV-64A

RESEARCHER: Mr Kevin Love

ORGANISATION: VIC Dept of Agriculture

PHONE: 03 651 7798

PUBLICATIONS:

Wilkinson, R.L., Barr, N.F., Cary, J.W. and Love, K.J. 1994. Improving Farm Chemical Labelling: the Role of Pictograms, The University of Melbourne, Department of Agriculture.

Last updated: 10 October 1996
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