On 22 November 2023, the European Parliament voted on the amendments to the proposal for a Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR). This vote resulted in the deletion of the majority of key measures outlined in the draft law, ultimately leading to the rejection of the hollowed out text. This compromises the urgent improvements foreseen in the Farm to Fork Strategy, undermining efforts to ensure an effective protection of EU citizens and ecosystems from hazardous pesticides. 

EDC-Free Europe coalition members are deeply concerned about the outcome of this vote, and underline the urgent need to strengthen EU regulations on pesticides. The Parliament’s vote ignores the voices of over 1.1 million EU citizens calling for a 80% gradual reduction of the use of synthetic pesticides by 2030, and a total phase out by 2035. 


The European Commission’s proposal, put forward in June 2022, aimed to gradually reduce the use and risk of chemical pesticides in the EU by 50% by 2030, and included measures to protect sensitive areas, such as public areas, nature reserves and water resources.


European agriculture is pesticide-intensive, using a vast amount of substances that a growing body of independent science says can negatively impact health, biodiversity and the environment. Numerous pesticides found as residues in the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breath are known or suspected to be harmful endocrine disrupting chemicals. 

Visit the links below for reactions from EDC-Free Europe coalition members: