foodwatch calls on EU Commission to stop export of harmful pesticides already banned in Europe
Commission President von der Leyen must live up to her promises
foodwatch has urged EU Commission president van der Leyen to introduce a ban on the export of harmful chemicals that are not authorized in the EU. Until now, the Commission has failed to deliver a legislative proposal as promised in the European Green Deal commitments four years ago, foodwatch criticized. This leaves millions of people and the environment in countries outside the EU unprotected. Moreover, the toxic chemicals end up in Europe, in the form of residues in food imports, such as fruits and vegetables.
“Pesticide giants are making huge profits at the expense of people’s health and the environment. Selling products that are too toxic for the European market to countries outside of the EU is unethical. Commission President von der Leyen promised to put an end to this practice four years ago and action is overdue”, criticises Natacha Cingotti from foodwatch International. “Europe’s food safety system has a dangerous loophole: despite strong regulatory provisions allowing to ban certain harmful chemicals, traces of these very substances are still found in imported food sold in European supermarkets.”
In a recent letter to Commissioner Jessika Roswall, Environment ministers from several countries, among them France, Denmark and Sweden ask the Commission to put forth a legislative proposal towards ending the export of hazardous chemicals to third countries.
“Toxic boomerang”
In 2023, EU based companies have been exporting 173,451 tons of PIC pesticides to other countries,where regulations are less stringent, according to recent data by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). For trade reasons, the EU casually allows import tolerance for some of those dangerous pesticides, through the setting of Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) that are higher than the detection level. This allows residues of pesticides that are banned in the EU to pertain in food products when they should not.
Report: Toxic residues in 8% of products sold in Dutch supermarkets
In 2023, 8% of products sold in Dutch supermarkets contained residues from banned pesticides, according to a report published by foodwatch Netherlands today that looked into data from the Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA). The most contaminated products were bananas (78%), raisins (65%) and rice (30%).
Civil society urging Commission to present legislation
foodwatch and numerous other NGOs protested already in 2019 against the toxic trade by European pesticide producers. As part of the EU Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability, the EU Commission announced promised to act to put an end to the export of hazardous chemicals already banned in the European Union. However, after carrying out a public consultation for a legislative proposal in early 2023, no further action has been taken.
Today, foodwatch international, Broederlijk Delen, CCFD-Terre Solidaire, Humundi, Pesticide Action Network Europe and Slow Food have sent a letter to Commission President Von der Leyen calling on her to end the double standards and stop the boomerang effect. In addition, foodwatch has also launched an online-petition under www.foodwatch.org/en/stop-the-toxic-trade.