France has decided to prevent the import of fresh fruit and vegetables treated with the insecticide thiacloprid, which is banned in the EU, the Ministry of Agriculture announced on Friday 23 February, fulfilling a promise made to angry farmers.
On 8 February, France asked the European Commission to take action (see EUROPE 13347/4).
“As the EU has not yet” taken any measures to limit the entry of such products into Europe, the government has decided, in order to protect consumers, to suspend the introduction, import and placing on the national market of fresh fruit and vegetables from third countries treated with thiacloprid, by ministerial order dated 23 February, according to Paris.
The active substance in the neonicotinoid family, “banned from use in France since September 2018 and in the European Union since February 2021, continues to be used in other parts of the world to protect crops against certain insects”, the ministry points out.
This substance is considered by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to be a category 2 carcinogen, a category 1B reproductive toxicant and an endocrine disruptor.
The one-year measure will cease to apply as soon as the Commission agrees to France’s request to lower the maximum residue levels (MRLs) for thiacloprid that can be detected in foodstuffs entering Europe. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)