Breakfast looks a lot more expensive under new EU pesticide plans

An analysis by the European Commission's in-house researchers confirms what non-EU farmers have been saying for months: A plan to prohibit any trace of some of the "most hazardous" pesticides banned in the EU for health and environmental reasons would lead to fewer and more expensive products.

Across all scenarios, the direction of effects resulting from lowering the MRLs to the LOQ is similar — imports decline, EU production rises and consumer prices increase — but magnitude depends strongly on exporters’ adaptation assumptions, ranging from negligible to substantial impacts.

The proposed residue ban, which is part of the food and feed safety simplification package, is popular with European farmers seeking a level playing field with foreign growers — after all, it was partly designed to appease their ire over the EU's trade deal with the Mercosur bloc.. In order to avoid leaving any residue on fruits and vegetables, producers would essentially have to stop using the substance in question.

The Commission said its aim is to prevent the most hazardous substances — banned for use in the bloc — from re-entering the EU through imports altogether by lowering their residue limits to a technical zero.

The EU has reason to be concerned about international implications. Several countries, including Australia, Canada, Paraguay and the U.S., have challenged the measure at the World Trade Organization level, while the International Fresh Produce Association argues that existing global food safety standards already protect consumers while facilitating trade.

Some EU countries support mirror clauses as a way to be more fair to European farmers, who fear free trade deals like Mercosur allow competition from abroad that isn't subject to the same restrictions.