Co-rapporteurs Alexander Bernhuber (EPP, Austrian) and Anna Strolenberg (Greens/EFA, Dutch) presented their draft European Parliament own-initiative report on faster registration and use of biological control agents at a joint meeting of the Environment and Agriculture Committees on Thursday 3 July. The European Commission’s proposal is expected by the end of the year, as part of the ‘omnibus’ legislation.
Alexander Bernhuber expressed the wish not to get bogged down in interminable negotiations and requested a focus on faster authorisation of biological control agents, adding that he had “already reached an agreement” with Anna Strolenberg. “If you want to reduce the use of chemical pesticides, you have to make it easier to access and market biological control agents”, she went on to confirm.
The Green MEP deplored the lack of a “support framework” for companies working on these biological alternatives, when it can take “up to five to eight years” to bring a product to market, a period during which companies take the risk of making all the necessary investments.
The co-rapporteurs have therefore devised solutions in their draft report. The first would be to define what a ‘biological control agent’ is, in order to avoid ‘fragmentation’ and ‘investor hesitation’ linked to the risk of uncertainty.
There will also be a separate fast-track procedure for ‘biological control agents’, with technical support “for applicants and especially for SMEs with good ideas”, explained Anna Strolenberg. This fast-track procedure within the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) will also require “adequate funding” to ensure that the European agency has dedicated staff and a budget. Finally, the co-rapporteurs insisted on access to knowledge via training so that farmers can learn how to use the new techniques being marketed.
The MEPs from the different political groups have agreed to cooperate, in particular to ensure that the Parliament’s own-initiative report is ready before the European Commission’s proposal.
Christophe Clergeau (S&D, French) added that it would setting the right tone to warn the Commission not to table its proposal under an urgency procedure. “We can reconcile speed of work with respect for roles and prerogatives”, he insisted.
See the draft European Parliament report: https://aeur.eu/f/hoy (Original version in French by Florent Servia)