A study published on Thursday 20 April by the NGO Greenpeace in Germany showed that pesticides banned in the EU were present in Brazilian lemons imported into Europe.
The NGO analysed 52 samples of Brazilian lemons sold in supermarkets in eight European countries and found that 51 of them contained pesticide residues. 27 active ingredients were found, of which six are not approved or banned in the EU, according to Greenpeace. This includes imidacloprid, an insecticide from the group of neonicotinoids banned in the EU.
The NGO is concerned about the risk that the future EU-Mercosur trade agreement poses to the import of such contaminated products. “The EU-Mercosur agreement would accelerate this toxic cycle and consolidate a neo-colonial and extractivist relationship favourable to the EU”, said Lisa Cunha, a Greenpeace Germany activist.
See the study: https://aeur.eu/f/6er (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)