Member States take landmark decision to protect pollinators
Biodiversity such as pollinators will benefit from a pioneering decision by Member States to lower international pesticide residue thresholds in order to facilitate sustainable food systems.
The new trading standards agreed by Member States concern two neonicotinoid pesticides (clothianidin and thiamethoxam) that are known to have adverse effects on bees and will lead to better protection of agricultural eco systems.
Forecast to come into force next year, the new rules will lower maximum residue limits (MRLs) for these substances to the lowest level that can be measured with the latest technologies. This Farm to Fork initiative introducing new MRLs will apply to food produced in the EU – for which the threshold is already very low – and to food imported from third countries. The EU’s Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, commented on the Member States’ landmark Green Deal decision: “This is the first time we lower MRLs to take into account the impact of active substances on the environment that can have global consequences.”
