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A previous case-control study which utilised the occupational information available on the New Zealand Cancer Registry found an increased risk of multiple myeloma in agricultural workers consistent with previous findings in the United States. The findings are now presented for the second phase of the study which involved interviewing 76 cases of multiple myeloma (who had been included in the previous study) together with 315 controls with other types of cancer. The previous finding on an excess of farmers in the case group was confirmed by the interview data (odds ratio= 1.7, 95% confidence limits 1.0-2.9, P=0.04). There were no significant differences between cases and controls regarding potential exposure to phenoxy herbicides or chlorophenols. There were also no significant differences regarding activities involving potential exposure to other agricultural chemicals, although the odds ratio for fencing work, which may involve exposure to arsenic and sodium pentachlorophenate, was 1.6 (95% confidence limits 0.9-2.7, P=0.l1). The odds ratios were significantly elevated for sheep farming (odds ratio= 1.9, 95% confidence limits 1.0-3.6, P=0.04) and exposure to beef cattle (odds ratio=1.7, 95% conficence limits 1.0-2.9, P=0.05). The odds ratio was also elevated for persons reporting a history of hay fever (odds ratio= 1.9, 95% confidence limits 1.0-3.5, P=0.05). Overall, these findings suggest that the search for the causes of elevated mortality in farmers from multiple myeloma should be directed to potential causes other than pesticide exposure. A previous analysis of the occupations of male multiple myeloma and malignant lymphoma patients recorded on the New Zealand Cancer Registry during the period 1977-81, compared with other cancer controls, found that agricultural workers were at increased risk of developing malignant lymphoma and multiple myeloma including Swedish studies which found an association between malignant lymphoma and exposure to phenoxy herbicides or chlorophenols (Hardell, 1981; Hardell et al., 1981), both of which have been widely used in New Zealand since the late 1940's (Smith et al., 1984). The New Zealand excess was almost entirely among patients registered under codes 202 (non-Hodgkin's lymphoma other than lymphosarcoma and reticulosarcoma) and 203 (multiple myeloma) previously (Pearce et al., 1986), and demonstrated that the overall excess for farmers was attributable to excesses among farmers who had carried out fencing work or worked in a meat works, with particularly high risks for farmers who had carried out both activities. This paper presents the interview findings for the multiple myeloma subgroup. Methods The study population comprised …