Pesticides Archives

European lawmakers finally agreed on a timeline to vote on their position on the EU’s plan to slash pesticides. But this leaves a final deal on the contentious file unlikely in 2023, as confirmed by a leaked draft of the Belgian presidency priorities. 

A question mark hangs over the timeline of the sustainable use of pesticides regulation (SUR) after a leaked letter showed agriculture MEPs are dragging their feet on the crucial file, leading Commission officials to accuse them of deliberately blocking progress on the regulation.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is struggling to gain traction in France, despite being promoted by both the EU and the French authorities and having proven benefits for farmers and the environment.

The Member of the European Parliament leading the revision of the EU's pesticide framework is pushing for more ambition both in targets and timelines for EU-wide pesticide cuts, according to a draft report seen by EURACTIV.

After a recent EU court decision to block the emergency use of bee-toxic neonicotinoid pesticides, the European Commission is still unclear on what exactly this ruling means in practice.

Apple producers in the North Italian region of South Tyrol use more hazardous pesticides than necessary, according to an investigation by German media and environmentalists. But not everyone thinks the data is this clear-cut.

The UK government has allowed the emergency use of banned bee-toxic neonicotinoid pesticides in England for the third year in a row just days after the EU ruled out the practice. 

The EU sugar industry has fired back against an EU court ruling meaning member states are no longer allowed temporary exemptions for banned neonicotinoid pesticides, while other farming bodies maintain this is both workable and necessary given their bee-toxic credentials. 

More than 700 other scientists from across European member states and scientific disciplines have deep concern about the recent turn of the political tide against the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation, writes Jeoren Candel.

Banned pesticides deemed toxic to humans and environmental health are still consistently in use in the EU thanks to the routine use of emergency derogations, a new report has found.

The European Commission has approved France's €215 million aid scheme intended to help French farmers who do not use the controversial herbicide glyphosate and therefore face higher production costs.

The European Commission's proposal for halving the use of pesticides is still up for discussion, Food Safety Commissioner Stella Kyriakides stressed after a majority of member states called for a fresh impact study on the ramifications of such a step.

EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski has backed the idea of a fresh study on the impact of plans to reduce pesticides, a move championed by EU countries but slammed as a covert way to stall the legislation by green lawmakers and campaigners. 

The revision of the EU's pesticide framework should 'not be seen in isolation' from other forthcoming initiatives such as the proposal on new genomic techniques (NGTs), according to the Europen Commission.

Figuring out the fairest approach to reducing pesticide use remains a 'difficult and open' problem, according to the EU agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski as member states gear up to formally demand a more comprehensive impact assessment on the issue.

Member states once again blocked the Commission's proposal to extend the marketing authorisation of the herbicide glyphosate for another year, but the EU executive is set to still approve an interim renewal before mid-December.

The European Parliament’s largest political group, the centre-right EPP, has warned the European Commission against overstepping its mark on its plans to slash the use and risk of pesticides in half, vowing to push back on the proposals as tensions reach breaking point.

Fertilisers from livestock manure could be key to reducing costs and increasing independence from non-EU countries, according to EU27 agriculture ministers and the European Commission.

Several member states blocked the temporary extension of the EU approval of the controversial pesticide glyphosate for one more year on Friday (14 October) after it failed to reach the necessary majority.

The European Commission has declined to commit to moving forward with the delayed revision of the regulation on chemicals on the back of a deepening rift between the socialists and the centre-right groups of the European Parliament over the issue.  

A European Citizens' Initiative calling for a complete phase-out of synthetic pesticides by 2035 has passed the 1 million signature threshold needed to place it on the agenda of the European Commission and Parliament.

EU member states have called for a new impact assessment on the European Commission’s proposal to slash the use and risk of pesticides, citing concerns over food security and resilience, but the EU executive has stood firm in its convictions. 

Germany will ban from next spring the export to third countries of pesticides that are not authorised for the EU market and will also push for a bloc-wide export ban together with France.

Lawmakers and stakeholders have criticised the European Commission for not placing enough emphasis on the potential impact of its proposal to halve both the use and risk of chemical pesticides by 2030 on food production.