Fiscal incentives for pesticides as an anti-health and anti-environmental policy

Abstract: Pesticides are hazardous products, and fiscal incentives for such products directly and indirectly impact public resources for health in Brazil, since these incentives encourage pesticide use. The article thus aimed to estimate the tax relief for pesticides in Brazil in 2017. The methodology included a literature search on related tax legislation, followed by estimates based on pesticide expenditures according to the latest national Agricultural Census and foreign trade data. Tax exemptions on pesticides in 2017 totaled BRL 9.8 billion (USD 3.0 billion), of which: exemptions of BRL 6.2 billion (USD 1.9 billion) on value-added tax on sales and services, BRL 1.7 billion (USD 515 million) on excise tax, BRL 1.5 billion (USD 455 million) on social tax on net corporate income, and BRL 472 million (USD 143 million) on import tax. The results show that the efficiency of pesticide use is artificially overestimated by failing to take tax exemptions into account. Thus, taxation is a potential means for reducing the demand for pesticides, mitigating negative externalities and strengthening alternative and ecologically balanced agricultural practices.