Tag: pesticides

The EU's risk assessment system for chemicals has derailed and should be reformed urgently in favour of a science-based system that takes full account of the work undertaken by the scientific community, argues Hans Muilerman.

After years of trying to persuade consumers that their products present no health or environmental risk, the pesticides industry has now recognised its failure to address wider society concerns. Friedhelm Schmider of industry group ECPA promises "a huge change of mindset" in engaging with consumers and farmers.

When blood-red sludge broke through containment walls in the Hungarian town of Ajka in October 2010, the immediate concern was the safety of hundreds of nearby residents. In the end 10 people died from exposure and the toxic muck spilled into waterways, including the Danube, prompting alarms downstream.

Counterfeit pesticides are currently slipping through the regulatory net and need to be addressed, argues Phil Newton, senior communications manager at the European Crop Protection Association, in an exclusive commentary for EurActiv.

Detailed human health and environmental risk assessment of some 1,000 active substances authorised for use in pesticides before 1991 has led to the removal of more than two thirds of them from the market.

Support in the European Parliament for new measures banning a number of hazardous pesticides appears to be strong, as MEPs ready for a vote on the issue at their plenary session in Strasbourg next week.

The European Parliament's environment committee approved a ban on pesticides that are toxic to human health, setting the stage for a showdown with EU member states which favour a more lenient approach.

If the EU pesticides review goes through as it currently stands, food prices will at worst more than double, according to a new industry-funded impact assessment.

Debate over the use of pesticides in agriculture is taking a new twist as an EU proposal to substitute the most dangerous substances with safer alternatives encounters opposition from farmers, who argue that bans will only exacerbate the crisis caused by rising food prices.

The Council's political agreement bans the marketing and use of substances proven to be carcinogenic, mutagenic and toxic for reproduction amid claims from manufacturers that the new rules will drive up food prices even further.

The Slovenian EU Presidency has delayed a key vote on pesticides until June, following a meeting of EU agriculture ministers in Brussels yesterday (19 May) that revealed a divergence of views over which substances should be kept off the market. 

A study by the European Pesticides Action Network (PAN) reveals that wines on sale in the EU may contain residues of up to 10 different pesticides potentially harmful to human health. But manufacturers argue that the quantities are so tiny that drinking wine poses no health risk.

Overly stringent EU rules on pesticides will lead to a decline in European agricultural self-sufficiency resulting in ever-increasing food prices and job losses in the agri-food sector, warns a recent industry-funded study. The findings were immediately rejected by environmental activists, who derided the study as "professional scaremongering" by "lobbyists behaving like a posse of corporate cowboys."

The Agriculture Council has reached a political agreement on controversial new EU rules governing pesticide use. But the content of the agreement is being kept from the public until January, fuelling speculation that the Portuguese EU Presidency is trying to 'bury' the file before the holidays.

The European Parliament will vote tomorrow (23 October) on a proposal to tighten pesticide usage and authorisation rules in Europe, as concerns grow over the impact of 'plant protection products'. But farmers and pesticide producers have expressed concern that the measures will lead to more red tape and remove harmless substances from the market. 

The Parliament's Environment Committee voted yesterday (12 September) for tougher authorisation procedures for pesticides, attracting fury from producers who said the rules would "lead to the disappearance of many substances that have long been used safely by farmers".

Denmark's success in reducing pesticide use over the past 20 years was the focus of a debate organised by the Liberal Democrats in Parliament on 21 March 2007.

A Parliament hearing on 5 March 2007 explored ways to minimise the pesticide residues that can still be found beyond established limits in soil or groundwater. While NGOs called for a Europe-wide reduction in pesticide use, manufacturers said that training was the best option, rather than a ban which would cripple European agriculture.

New Commission proposals seek to ban aerial spraying and substitute hazardous products with safer alternatives. Producers said the draft new rules could end up forcing dozens of substances out of the market "based purely on political perception".

At its annual conference on 17 November, the European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) focused on innovation as a bridge between agricultural needs, consumer protection, environment and industrial jobs.

Trade Unions and green NGOs are challenging a decision to authorise Paraquat, a highly toxic herbicide. The Commission maintains it approved the product provided strict security conditions were met.

The Parliament adopted on 27 March the Van Brempt report, calling for stricter measures to reduce the quantity of pesticides used in the Union. The MEPs, however, voted against a proposal to set a general 50 per cent reduction target for the next ten years.

The Commission organised a major stakeholder conference to debate its future plans for a thematic strategy on pesticides use on 4 November. The conference showed big differences of opinion between the environmental groups and the crop protection industry.

The Food and Veterinary Office of the European Commission has published the report of the year 2000 pesticide residue monitoring programme. The report highlights the results of the analysis of pesticide residues in 45,000 samples of fruits, vegetables and cereals.