In the Somme department, December 12, 2022. PASCAL ROSSIGNOL
The Twenty-Seven backed their call for a new impact assessment on regulations aimed at reducing the use of pesticides in the European Union (EU) on Monday 19 December, delaying discussions on that text until the big dam of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), already outraged by the one-year extension of glyphosate approval.
At the end of June, the European Commission detailed its roadmap to halve the use and risks of chemical or hazardous pesticides at EU level by 2030 compared to 2015-2017, by banning them almost entirely from protected natural areas.
This draft text had provoked fierce opposition in some member states, concerned about the fate of farmers who remain “no alternative” and a possible decline in agricultural yields, while the war waged by Russia in Ukraine was affecting grain and fertilizer markets worldwide messes up .
Concern from environmental NGOs
After a recent discussion between the agriculture ministers of the Twenty-Seven, “Member States are asking the Commission to present an additional study” on the text within six months, the Czech EU Presidency announced on Monday evening. The previously conducted impact study “is based on data collected before the outbreak of war in Ukraine” and cannot take into account “the long-term impact on EU food security”, the communication specifies. This study ‘does not provide adequate quantitative analysis of the potential impact on the agricultural sector and the potential increase in food dependency in Europe,’ he adds.
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In the meantime, “only the work at the technical level will continue on the points not concerned”, the press release says, recalling that the 27 also expect “flexibility” in the national targets assigned to each state.
Environmental NGOs in particular fear that the delay of waiting for a new study will prevent the regulations from being passed before the 2024 European elections – they must ultimately be the subject of negotiations between states and MPs.
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“It’s a strategy to destroy this anti-pesticide plan with the justification of the food crisis in connection with Ukraine, but this resistance is part of the protection of major agricultural interests,” Helmut Burtscher-Schaden assessed in early December. Expert of the Austrian NGO Global 2000 and co-initiator of the “Save Bees and Farmers” initiative.
Glyphosate approval extended by at least one year
Furthermore, in the absence of a consensus among member states on the issue, the European Commission formally adopted its decision in early December to extend the approval of glyphosate in the EU by a year pending a scientific evaluation of the controversial herbicide. The current approval, which was renewed in 2017, expired on December 15.
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However, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) announced in May the postponement to July 2023 of a long-awaited study on “the risks of exposure to glyphosate for animals, humans and the environment”. This assessment is considered essential to decide whether or not to extend the authorization granted to the herbicide by five years.