Hygeia Analytics – Who We Are

See also:

wheat

The Hygeia Analytics Team

The original content of Hygeia Analytics, and narrative presented without attribution to an author, was written by Dr. Charles Benbrook.  See below;  for Chuck’s resume and more information on his work.

As the content on Hygeia Analytics grows, the website will serve as a platform to provide easy access to the papers, reports, analytical tools, speeches, and other work completed over Dr. Benbrook’s career.  It will also be used to make available several old, hard to access, but historically significant documents that have been disseminated in the past via other websites built by, or featuring Chuck’s work. These include Ag BioTech InfoNet, the Consumers Union website covering the implementation of the Food Quality Protection Act, the “Measure to Manage” website at Washington State University, and Pest Management at the Crossroads.

Rachel Benbrook is the HA webmaster. She lives with her two sons in Bellingham, Washington, and has developed and worked on several websites over her career in coastal ecosystem management and science education.  

Technical and design assistance has been provided by Rick D’Haene, owner of Bellingham WP.

About Dr. Benbrook

Dr. Benbrook is an avid fly-fisherman.

Brief Bio — Charles Benbrook is the Executive Director of the Heartland Health Research Alliance and is leading the Management Team carrying out the Heartland Study. This long-term clinical study is assessing the impacts of herbicide exposures across the Midwest on birth outcomes, the health of pregnant women, and children’s development. Benbrook has also served for four years as an expert witness for plaintiffs in the ongoing Roundup-non-Hodgkin lymphoma litigation. Chuck has published several scientific papers on glyphosate-based herbicide use, risks, and regulation. He has a PhD in agricultural economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an undergraduate degree from Harvard University. His research and advocacy for change has focused on agricultural impacts on public health and the environment, soil health and water conservation, pesticide use and regulation, biotechnology, and ag policy and politics. He runs Benbrook Consulting Services. For more see his website Hygeia Analytics (www.hygeia-analytics.com). Benbrook’s full CV is available here, and he can be reached at cbenbrook@hh-ra.org.

List of Dr. Benbrook’s Peer-reviewed Publications

Benbrook, Charles M., & Davis, Donald R.; “The dietary risk index system: a tool to track pesticide dietary risks;” Environmental Health, 2020, 19(1); DOI: 10.1186/s12940-020-00657-z.

Mesnage, R, Benbrook, C, Antoniou M.N. “Insight into the confusion over surfactant co-formulants in glyphosate-based herbicides,” Food and Chemical Toxicology, 2019, 128:137-145; DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2019.03.053

Benbrook, Charles “How did the US EPA and IARC reach diametrically opposed conclusions on the genotoxicity of glyphosate-based herbicides?,” Environmental Sciences Europe, 2019, 31(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12302-018-0184-7.

Charles Benbrook, “Why Regulators Lost Track and Control of Pesticide Risks: Lessons From the Case of Glyphosate-Based Herbicides and Genetically Engineered-Crop Technology,” Current Environmental Health Reports, July 12, 2018.

Charles M. Benbrook, Donald R. Davis, Bradley J. Heins, Maged A. Latif, Carlo Leifert, Logan Peterman, Gillian Butler, Ole Faergeman, Silvia Abel-Caines, Marcin Baranski, “Enhancing the Fatty Acid Profile of Milk through Forage-Based Rations, with Nutrition Modeling of Diet Outcomes,” Food Science and Nutrition, 2018, 00, DOI: 10.1002/fsn3.610.

Charles Benbrook, “The Dollars and Cents of Soil Health,” in Global Soil Security, Damien Field, Cristine L. Morgan, and Alex B. McBratney (Eds.), 2017, Springer eBook, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-43394-3.

Laura N Vandenberg, Bruce Blumberg, Michael N Antoniou, Charles M Benbrook, Lynn Carroll, Theo Colborn, Lorne G Everett, Michael Hansen, Philip J Landrigan, Bruce P Lanphear, Robin Mesnage, Frederick S vom Saal, Wade V Welshons, John Peterson Myers, “Is it time to reassess current safety standards for glyphosate-based herbicides?”,  Journal of Epidemology and Community Health, 2017, 0, DOI: 10.113/jech-2016-208463.

Benbrook, C, “Enhancements Needed in GE Crop and Food Regulation in the U.S. ,” Frontiers in Public Health, 2016, Environmental Section, Vol 4, Article 59.

Benbrook, C, “Trends in the use of glyphosate herbicide in the U.S. and globally,”  Environmental Sciences Europe, 2016, 28:3,  DOI: 10.1186/s12302-016-0070-0.

John Peterson Myers, Michael N. Antoniou, Bruce Blumberg, Lynn Carroll, Theo Colborn, Lorne G. Everett, Michael Hansen, Philip J. Landrigan, Bruce P. Lanphear, Robin Mesnage, Laura N. Vandenberg, Frederick S. vom Saal, Wade V. Welshons and Charles M. Benbrook,  “Concerns over use of glyphosate-based herbicides and risks associated with exposures: a consensus statement,   Environmental Health, 2016, 15:19, DOI: 10.1186/s12940-016-0117-0 

Dominika Średnicka-Tober, Marcin Barański, Chris J. Seal, Roy Sanderson, Charles Benbrook, Håvard Steinshamn, Joanna Gromadzka-Ostrowska, Ewa Rembiałkowska, Krystyna Skwarło-Sońta, Mick Eyre, Giulio Cozzi, Mette Krogh Larsen, Teresa Jordon, Urs Niggli, Tomasz Sakowski, Philip C. Calder, Graham C. Burdge, Smaragda Sotiraki, Alexandros Stefanakis, Sokratis Stergiadis, Halil Yolcu, Eleni Chatzidimitriou, Gillian Butler, Gavin Stewart and Carlo Leifert, “Higher PUFA and n-3 PUFA, conjugated linoleic acid, α-tocopherol and iron, but lower iodine and selenium concentrations in organic milk: a systematic literature review and meta- and redundancy analyses,” British Journal of Nutrition, 2016, 115, pp 1043-1060. DOI:10.1017/S0007114516000349.  See more on this paper here. 

Średnicka-Tober D, Barański M, Seal C, Sanderson R, Benbrook C, Steinshamn H, Gromadzka-Ostrowska J, Rembiałkowska E, Skwarło-Sońta K, Eyre M, Cozzi G, Krogh Larsen M, Jordon T, Niggli U, Sakowski T, Calder PC, Burdge GC, Sotiraki S, Stefanakis A, Yolcu H, Stergiadis S, Chatzidimitriou E, Butler G, Stewart G, Leifert C,  “Composition differences between organic and conventional meat: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis,” British Journal of Nutrition, 2016, 115(6): 994-1011. DOI: 10.1017/S0007114515005073. See more here.

Philip Landrigan, Charles Benbrook, “GMOs, Herbicides, and Public Health,” New England Journal of Medicine, August 20, 2015, 373 (8): 693-695, DOI: 10.1056/NEJMp1505660.

Marcin Baranski, Dominka Srednicka-Tober, Nikolaos Volakakis, Chris Seal, Roy Sanderson, Gavin B. Stewart, Charles Benbrook, Bruno Biavati, Emilia Markellou, Charilaos Giotis, Joanna Gromadzka-Ostrowska, Ewa Rembiałkowska, Krystyna Skwarło-Son, Raija Tahvonen, Dagmar Janovska, Urs Niggli, Philippe Nicot and Carlo Leifert,  “Higher antioxidant and lower cadmium concentrations and lower incidence of pesticide residues in organically grown crops: a systematic literature review and meta-analyses,” British Journal of Nutrition, 2014, 112:5, DOI:10.1017/S0007114514001366.

Charles M. Benbrook and Brian P. Baker, “Perspective on Dietary Risk Assessment of Pesticide Residues in Organic Food,” Sustainability, 2014, 6:6,: 3552-3570; DOI:10.3390/su6063552.

Charles M. Benbrook, Gillian Butler, Maged A. Latif, Carlo Leifert, and Donald R. Davis, “Organic Production Enhances Milk Nutritional Quality by Shifting Fatty Acid Composition: A United States-Wide, 18-Month Study,” PLOS ONE, 2013, 8:12.

Benbrook, C.M, Impacts of Changing Pest Management Systems and Organic Production on Tree Fruit Pesticide Residues and Risk,. Acta Horticulturae, 2013, 1001:91-102, DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2013.1001.8. 

Benbrook, C, “Are organic foods safer or healthier?,” Annals of Internal Medicine, 2013, 158 (4): 296-297.

Benbrook, C,  Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops on Pesticide Use in the U.S. – the First Sixteen Years, Environmental Sciences-Europe, 2012, 24:24, DOI:10.1186/2190-4715-24-24.

Benbrook, Charles, “Genetically engineered crops increase pesticide use in United States,” Pesticides News, 2010, 12-14.

Benbrook, C, “What Does Sustainable Agriculture Have to Offer? Conclusions and Recommendations in Two NAS/NRC Reports,” The Organic Center Critical Issues Report, 2010.

Benbrook, C, “The Impacts of Yield on Nutritional Quality: Lessons from Organic Farming,” Horticultural Science, 2009, 44:1, 12-14.

Benbrook, C,  “Prevention, not profit, should drive pest management,” Pesticides News, 2009, 82.

Benbrook, C, Davis DR, and Andrews, PK,“Methodological flaws in selecting studies and comparing nutrient concentrations led Dangour et al to miss the emerging forest amid the trees,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2009, 90: 6, 1700-1701.

Benbrook, C McCullum-Gomez, C., “Organic vs conventional farming,” Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 2009, 109:5,  809-811.

Zhao, X, Carey T, Benbrook, C., “The influence of organic production on nutritional quality of fruit and vegetables: a meta-analysis,” HortScience, 2007, 42:4, 885-886.

Benbrook, Charles, “Toward a “Reduced Risk” Pesticide Policy Worthy of the Name,” Outlooks on Pest Management,  2006, 17(4), 181-184. doi:10.1564/17aug11.

McCullum, C., C.M. Benbrook, L. Knowles, S. Roberts, T. Schryver, “Application of Modern Biotechnology to Food and Agriculture: Food Systems Perspective,” Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 2003, 35: 319.

Benbrook, C. et. al.,“Use of ‘resistance risk profiles’ to guide resistance management planning,” Pesticide Outlook, 2003, 14:3, 107-110.

Baker, B. P., Benbrook, C. M., Groth, E., and K.L. Benbrook, “Pesticide residues in conventional, integrated pest management (IPM)-grown and organic foods: insights from three US data sets.” Food Additives and Contamination, 2002, 19.5: 427-46.

Benbrook, C. M. et al, “Developing a pesticide risk assessment tool to monitor progress in reducing reliance on high-risk pesticides.” American Journal of Potato Research, 2002, 79: 183-99.

Benbrook, C. M., “Organochlorine residues pose surprisingly high dietary risks.” Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 2002, 56:11, 822-23.

Benbrook, C. M, “Performance criteria for IPM: measuring IPM results,” Henk, M. Kogan M. IPM in Oregon: Achievements and Future Directions, Special Report 1020, 2002, 19-27. Corvallis: Integrated Plant Protection Center, Oregon State University Extension Service.

Benbrook, C,  “Do GM Crops Mean Less Pesticide Use?”, Pesticide Outlook, 2001, Royal Society of Chemistry.

Benbrook, C., Benbrook, K., Mellon, M.; “Hogging It: Estimates of Antimicrobial Abuse in Livestock;” 2001, Union of Concerned Scientists.

Benbrook, C., “Apples, Kids and Core Science,” Choices,  2000, Am. Ag. Econ. Assoc. 

Nigh, R., Benbrook, C., Brush, S., Garcia-Barrios, L., Ortega-Paczka, R., Perales, H.R.,  “Transgenic crops: a cautionary tale,” Science, 2000, 287:5460,  1927.

Lynch, S., D. Sexson, C.M. Benbrook, M. Carter, J. Wyman, P. Nowak, J. Barzen, S. Diercks, J. Wallendal,  “Working out the Bugs”, Choices, 2000,  Am. Ag. Econ. Assoc.

Benbrook, C, Foster, R.,  “Pest management at the crossroads,” American Journal of Alternative Agriculture, 1997,  12:1, 45-46.

Benbrook, C., “What We Know, Don’t Know, and Need to Know About Pesticide Residues in Food,”  Chapter 15 in Pesticide Residues and Food Safety: A Harvest of Viewpoints, 1990, Edited by B.G. Tweedy, et. al., Amer. Chemical Society Symposium Series # 446.

Benbrook, C., “The Den Bosch Declaration: Grappling with the challenges of sustainability,” Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 1991, 46:5, 349-352.

Benbrook, C., “Protecting Iowa’s common wealth: Why A Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture?,”  Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 1991, 46:2, 89-95.

Benbrook, C., “Sustainable agriculture: policy options and prospects,” American Journal of Alternative Agriculture, 1989, 4 (3-4): 153-159.

Benbrook, C.,  “Is American Environmental Policy Ready for de Minimis Risks in Water?”, Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, 1988, 8:3, 300-307.

Benbrook, C., “The environment and the 1990 farm bill,” Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 1988, 43:6, 440-443.

Benbrook, C.,“First Principles:  The Definition of Highly Erodible Land and Tolerable Soil Loss, Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 1988, 43:1, 35-38.

Benbrook, C., “The Science and Art of Conservation Policy,” Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 1986, 41:5, 285-291.

Benbrook, C., and Moses, P., “Engineering Crops to Resist Herbicides,” Technology Review, 1986, MIT Press, 89:8, 55-61, 79.

Benbrook, C.,  “Funding Agricultural Economics Research: Discussion, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 1985, 67:5, 1262-1263.

Benbrook, C., “Carcinogen Policy at EPA,” Science, 1983, 219:4586, 798.

Benbrook, C., “An examination of the fledging alliance of soil conservation and commodity price support programs,” North Central Journal of Agricultural Economics, 1980, 1: 1-16.

Dr. Benbrook’s Participation in Congressional Hearings

Hearings on Pesticide Safety and Regulation

Oral testimony given before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Department Operations,
Research, and Foreign Agriculture of the Committee on Agriculture; Hearing on “EPA Pesticide Regulatory Program Study;” Second Session, 97th Congress; December 17, 1982.

Written and oral testimony given September 7, 1988 before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Department Operations, Research, and Foreign Agriculture of the Committee on Agriculture; Hearing on “Pesticide Food Safety Act of 1988;” Second Session, 100th Congress; July 28 and September 7, 1988.

Written and oral testimony given before the U.S. Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources; Hearing on “Food Safety Amendments of 1989;” First Session, 101st Congress; June 6, 1989.

Written and oral testimony given before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Toxic Substances, Environmental Oversight, Research and Development of the Committee on Environment and Public Works; Hearing on “Review of the Subcommittee’s Report on Pesticides and to Consider the Regulation of EBDC (Fungicide);” First Session, 101st Congress; September 22, 1989.

Written and oral testimony given October 19, 1989 before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Department Operations, Research, and Foreign Agriculture of the Committee on Agriculture; Hearing on “Pesticide Regulatory Reform Amendments of 1989 and the Food Safety Assurance Act of 1989;” First Session, 101st Congress, October 19 and 31, 1989.

Written and oral testimony given February 19, 1992 before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Department Operations, Research, and Foreign Agriculture of the Committee on Agriculture; Hearing on “Food Safety Issues;” Second Session, 102nd Congress; February 19 and 26, March 4 and 11, 1992.

Hearings on U.S. Farm Policy 

Oral testimony given March 17, 1987 before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Wheat, Soybeans, and Feed Grains of the Committee on Agriculture; Hearing on “Policy Alternatives to the Food Security Act of 1985;” First Session, 100th Congress; March 10, 2, 17, 19 and 31, 1987.

Written and oral testimony  given before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Toxic Substances, Environmental Oversight, Research and Development of the Committee on Environment and Public Works; Hearing on “Chemicals and Food Crops;” First Session, 101st Congress; May 15, 1989.

Written and oral testimony given June 20, 1990 before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Agricultural Research and General Legislation of the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry; Hearing on “Preparation for the 1990 Farm Bill;” First and Second Session, 101st Congress; June 9, June 20, July 27, 1989 and March 22, March 29, 1990.

Hearings on Global Food Security

Written and oral testimony given February 28, 1989 before the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Natural Resources, Agricultural Research and Environment of the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology; Hearing on “Overview of the Global Food and Population Situation;” First Session, 101st Congress; February 23 and 28 1989.

Chlorpyrifos Litigation