"As far as we see at the moment, we will still not be able to make a compromise," Slovenian Agriculture Minister Iztok Jarc said yesterday. The Slovenian Presidency has sent the file back to member-state experts in the Committee of Permanent Representations (Coreper) for further discussion.
At issue are so-called 'cut-off criteria' for substances used in the production of pesticides. In July 2006 the Commission proposed a market ban on a wide range of 'active' substances that pose potentially severe risks to humans and the environment, notably endocrine disruptors as well as carcinogenic and genotoxic substances (EurActiv 13/07/06). The Parliament voted to support the Commission's proposal in October 2007 (EurActiv 24/10/07).
But farmers groups and pesticide producers say the proposed bans would be detrimental to the EU's food supply. They say the proposed bans are based on "assumptions" rather than science, and are calling for scientific risk assessments to determine whether the health benefits of such bans would outweigh the economic cost to industry and lower agricultural yields (EurActiv 05/02/08).
Several member states share these reservations. The UK, for example, has "serious concerns" about the impact of the plans, particularly in the context of the current crisis surrounding high food prices, says Helen Bower, press spokesperson for the UK's Permanent Representation in Brussels. A UK government study concluded that the Commission's proposals would lead to the prohibition of 15% of key pesticides used in the UK's food production, with the wheat sector the hardest hit, she said.
The UK, which is backed by Ireland, has also criticised the Commission for being too vague over how endocrine disruptors are defined in its proposal, says Elliott Canell of the Pesticides Action Network (PAN) Europe, who argues that a more precise definition would have little if any impact on UK farmers.
France, on the other hand, has surprised many observers by coming out in support of the Commission's plans. Despite its large agricultural sector, French President Nicolas Sarkozy in October 2007 pledged to cut the country's use of pesticides in half.
The Commission, meanwhile, has made it clear that it intends to stick to its guns on the issue. The proposed cut-off criteria are "essential", EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou said at the Council meeting.
Ministers are scheduled to vote on the file during the 23-24 June Agriculture Council.
