Latest from Brussels

Pesticide Regulation Progresses to Plenary Following Environment Committee Vote

The Environment Committee in the European Parliament (ENVI) has ensured a core part of the EU Green Deal – the pesticide regulation –  progress towards completion. In a vote yesterday (24th October)  the  SUR – sustainable use of pesticides regulation  – saw some changes introduced, but progress maintained. Despite many delays over the regulation since last June, the SUR text will now face a plenary vote by all Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) in November. […]

Latest from Brussels

A Frugal Farm to Fork – Update on Pesticides, new GMOs, Animal Welfare & Sustainable Food Systems

No progress for the Sustainable Food System Law and only the transport aspect of the animal welfare legislation surviving. Some progress is being made to move the SUR – Sustainable Use of Pesticides regulation –  on, though member states and the environment committee in the Parliament may be pushing in opposite directions. And somehow, Parliament is finding time to really push hard and fast for new GMO’s. […]

Latest from Brussels

Agri MEPs Move to Weaken Pesticide Regulation and Starve it of CAP funds

Lawmakers from the European Parliament’s agriculture committee have greenlit their opinion on the EU’s plan to slash the use and risk of pesticides in half. The agriculture committee (AGRI)’s  opinion calls for pushing the target date back from 2030 to 2035, scrapping a ban on the use of pesticides in sensitive areas and block the use of the EU’s farming subsidies programme (CAP) to fund pesticide reduction ambitions.  So what does this mean and what’s next? Natasha Foote and Oliver Moore report. […]

Latest from EU Member States

Beyond the Harvest: Health Effects of Pesticides on French Farmers

The SUR still proposes at least another thirty years of coexistence with pesticides, as its objective is the phasing out pesticides by 2050. Can we afford to wait another three decades? No, say those who advocate for an 80% reduction by 2030 (rather than 50%).
This article is based on accumulated knowledge of the impact of pesticides on health, distinguishing two types of exposed populations: farmers and other professional pesticide users (Part 1). […]

Latest from Brussels

Commission Releases Slew of Agri-Food Documents before Summer – here’s what you need to know.

School’s out for summer – and soon, the Brussels bubble will check out too. But not before a slew of new and updated regulations and legislations, impact assessments and more, all have their moment in the sun. Soil, seeds and NGTs, food waste, pesticides and of course the nature restoration law  – it’s all coming thick and fast in these heady days. Oliver Moore and Ashley Parsons guide you through the brimming lunchboxes of the Brussels bureaucrats in these final days before summer break. […]