This is a growing concern in North American agricultural crops. Corporate agriculture endangers public health and consumers of these products because they involve the use of pesticides; they add growth promoters and antibacterial promoters to animal feed; and major health concerns tend to be ignored by health organizations like the FDA. There has been many research done upon this topic and many have concluded that the extent to which we use these to make "bigger and better" food has driven us to grow our own poison.
Exposures to pesticides can be very dangerous and can result in concerns and major health risks. Studies have shown that farmers constantly exposed to pesticides have an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, ovarian cancer and other cancers, depression and respiratory problems (Consumers Report, 2015). Even though these farmers are constantly exposed, consumers are also vulnerable to these pesticides while purchasing items such as produce. When consuming produce there is a limit to how much pesticide the average human can consume. The EPA does tests to make sure that the levels of pesticides on food are low enough so that it is safe for children and infants to consume. These levels vary with specific produce items. By viewing the test results, one could conclude that the levels on some items are decreasing and on some it is increasing near high-risk. For example, an item that was once safe to eat is now considered high-risk. Also, items that used to be considered high-risk are now to be safe enough to eat. However, some items do not follow these patterns and are either constantly high-risk or safe; for example the green beans have been classified as high-risk for the past 20 years (Consumer Reports, 2015). This shows that companies change the amount of pesticides that are put onto the items sometimes increased by large amounts based on the amount of produce is planted.