The Commission’s proposal for a “food and feed safety omnibus” seriously weakens the EU's current pesticide rules, which aim to protect health and the environment.
It removes the limited approvals and the procedure for systematic, regular toxicity reviews that incorporate new scientific evidence and instead makes the unlimited approval of pesticides the default.
It restricts Member States’ ability to use the most recent scientific evidence when authorising pesticide products at the national level.
It extends grace periods for harmful pesticides, allowing these substances to remain on the market for much longer before they are banned.
It broadens the possibility of approving harmful pesticides by derogation from the safety approval criteria.
It introduces a poor definition of biocontrol, which could include synthetically produced substances that may have unknown or harmful effects.
It broadens the possibility of using drones for pesticide application.
The proposal undermines the primary purpose of the EU pesticide regulation, which is to ensure a high level of protection of human health and the environment. It was found to breach EU primary law, notably the precautionary principle and the principle of proportionality.
The proposal also contradicts the EU’s goal of moving away from a pesticide-dependent agricultural model. Far from promoting biocontrols, it functions as a deregulation “Trojan horse” for hazardous pesticides and disregards citizens’ repeated calls for stricter pesticide rules and better protection of health and the environment.
We urge the European Parliament and Council to oppose and reject the proposal.