Tuesday, 23rd September 2008
MEP says banning pesticides will cut production and increase food prices
As the debate on a wide ranging ban on pesticides enters a critical stage, Scottish MEP Struan Stevenson has issued a statement to back up demands for further studies, before the EU directive can come into force.
Mr Stevenson argued that the effects of this ban would lead to widescale loss in yields and increase food prices. His statement says:
“Farmers would be forced to increase the dosage of the few products still on the market thereby reducing a plant's resistance to pests and increasing the maximum residue limit of the pesticide.
“There is no need to ban substances that have passed the strict risk assessments currently in place: they are the most regulated chemicals in Europe and have undergone between 250 and 300 studies over many years and are monitored by Government authorities.
“With Parliament's criteria, we could see a loss of up to 85% of active agro-chemicals which would cause huge plant losses due to pests and diseases, massively reducing yields.
“By 2020, 27% of wheat yields could be lost and 50% of potato yields. There is insufficient land in the EU to compensate for this level of yield loss.
“Europe would experience a severe blow to production and therefore competitiveness on a global level.
“With the ban would come a further regulation on imported crops treated with pesticides from non-EU countries, putting pressure on EU agriculture productivity and further escalating food prices.
“Continued manufacture and export of pesticides from the EU would be hindered by the regulation thereby depriving agriculture in the developing world of access to technologies and effective insect control. Attempts to control Malaria would be seriously undermined.
“The system for authorising products would increase to 4-6 years (2 years at present). Such a delay would have a major impact with average losses of sale of €80 million per substance.
“The UK and the EU would increasingly have to rely on imported cereals, vegetables and fruits from countries where these products have not been banned.
“The concentration of natural pesticides in a plant is much higher than the synthetic pesticides used by farmers. Crops treated with these synthetic pesticides are less hazardous as they produce less natural pesticides given that their defence mechanism is not stimulated by a pest or an attack.
“Pesticides are essential to forestry management. Given that there is no effective alternative, a ban on pesticides, would allow insects and disease to thrive not only destroying timber and woodlands but the forests natural ability to protect habitats, fish spawning grounds and soil erosion. The forestry sector is an expensive business and a ban would give no incentive to invest in genetically improved stock as their benefits would be completely lost.”
Mr Stevenson said that a full assessment must be carried out (by the European Commission) before the European wide pesticide ban comes into force.
