What we do

EU's Efforts to regulate Endocrine Disruptors (EDCs)

Yet another impasse in European Institutions’ efforts to regulate Endocrine Disruptors (EDCs), chemicals that interfere with hormonal systems causing significant negative effects on reproduction, growth and brain development among others.

At the Standing Committee on Plants Animals Food and Feed (SCoPAFF) Pesticides legislation meeting on the 4 July 2017, after years of delays, Member States (MS) representatives voted in favour of the European Commission's proposal on scientific criteria to identify endocrine disruptors for plant protection products. While this outcome was vastly praised by the European Commission as “a great success”, civil society groups, including PAN Europe however expressed regret toward the decision, as according to them such criteria would “fail to provide an adequate level of protection of public health and the environment” as they are too lax and require too high a burden of proof to effectively deem a chemical has endocrine disrupting properties.

Glyphosate re-authorised in the EU for another 5 years: a bittersweet outcome

Brussels, November 28^th 2017

On Monday 27^th of November, one and a half years after the authorization of glyphosate - the active substance of the world’s most-used herbicide - was first presented to Member States for renewal at the Standing Committee of Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (SCoPAFF), the final decision over its re-authorisation in the EU was taken. The original proposal for a 15-year renewal had previously been reduced gradually to 5 years, but without achieving a qualified majority to vote in favour. Hence, the proposal was taken at a higher level. At the appeal committee of EU governments, a qualified majority of Member States finally voted in favour of the European Commission's proposal to renew the glyphosate authorisation for 5 years.

Crunch time: the glyphosate saga isn’t over yet, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel

Brussels, 26^th October 2017

Current developments on the possible re-authorisation of glyphosate reveal just how controversial the issue has become. An intrinsically rather technical and scientific issue, it has now passed into the hands of politicians and policymakers, as millions of citizens across Europe have been voicing concerns not only about their health being at stake but also about EU institutions’ risk assessment procedures not appearing to be geared in the interest of consumer protection.

Brussels: citizens tear down giant Glyphosate bottle as regulators discuss its re-approval

Brussels, 19th July 2017 – Today, as regulators met at the EU Commission headquarters to discuss the future of Glyphosate – the most used, and possibly most controversial, herbicide active substance in the world – citizens and civil society organizations from all over Europe gathered in the square outside the Berlaymont complex in a symbolic stunt.