MEP Eric Andrieu (S&D, France), who was chair of the European Parliament’s Special Committee on Pesticides (PEST), reacted strongly on Thursday 10 September to revelations from Greenpeace that 81,000 tonnes of toxic pesticides banned for use in the EU had been exported by the EU (81,000 tonnes in 2018), mostly to developing countries.
In a press release, he recalled that he had expressed his concern about this problem in a written question to the Commission last February in which he asked what it intended to do to put an end to these exports.
In its reply, the Commission pointed out that European companies or States exporting outside the EU do not require prior authorisation from the EU, and that their only obligation is to not use these toxic products on European territory, as the Pesticides Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009) does not have territorial scope.
“In other words, we are saying to the Member States and the major industrial groups: ‘Do what you want with your toxic products, but don’t do it here!’ It’s total hypocrisy!” the MEP said, adding that it is “unacceptable” that “in the eyes of some people, for the sake of profit, the life of a European is worth more than the life of a third world citizen”.
See his written response: https://bit.ly/3c089zj (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)