Other items offered for sale included goggles, respirators, and disposable coveralls. Attending a program that included information about protective clothing and viewing a clothing exhibit at a trade show were also reported as important sources of information by over one-third of the respondents. Only seven percent had attended a program that dealt specifically with protective clothing. The final question on the survey offered respondents the chance to request more information dealing with protective clothing selection and care. Two hundred of the 237 respondents asked for at least one piece of literature and over 600 publications were distributed.
Many growers view pesticide suppliers as a source of information on protective clothing.
Dealers are willing to answer customer questions, but their knowledge about protective clothing is limited. Much of the information chemical dealers provide for their customers comes from chemical manufacturers. This information is often not as broad and comprehensive as the materials available from Extension, and may be biased toward a particular product. The number and variety of protective items offered by chemical dealers is limited, which can be very frustrating for a customer who's trying to follow Extension recommendations. Extension programming in the area of pesticide protective clothing needs to better address the question of availability of protective products either by providing information on how it can be ordered from manufacturers or working with local suppliers.