France plans to re-authorize two insecticides banned in the EU

Monique Barbut expressed concern about the plans and warned of the consequences for biodiversity. She pointed to studies establishing a direct link between the use of these substances and the decline in bee populations. Without binding protective measures, a further loss of pollinating insects threatens, which could have far-reaching consequences for food production.

Reactions at home and abroad

Acetamiprid belongs to the group of neonicotinoids and acts on the nervous system of insects. Flupyradifurone is an active substance from the class of butenolides, which likewise disrupts signal transmission in the nervous system of insects. Both substances are suspected of impairing the orientation and learning behavior of bees even at low doses, thereby endangering entire colonies.

In Austria and several other EU states, the plans from Paris are being followed closely and, in some cases, with rejection. Environment ministers of the countries concerned fear that a French special arrangement could undermine the European Union's common authorization system. Should France actually create national exemptions, this could also trigger demands for similar steps in other member states.

Significance for agriculture

France's Constitutional Council has had to rule several times in recent years on the permissibility of plant protection products. The question now arises as to whether a law to re-authorize them could stand under EU law at all. The EU Plant Protection Regulation generally provides for uniform rules for the authorization of active substances, from which deviations are permitted only in narrowly limited exceptional cases.

Scientists point out that bees and other pollinators play a central role in food security. Estimates suggest that roughly one third of global food production depends directly or indirectly on pollination by insects. A further decline in populations would therefore have not only ecological but also significant economic consequences.

Beekeepers in France have been reporting sometimes dramatic losses in their colonies for years. They attribute these, among other things, to the use of plant protection products and are calling for a consistent ban on the substances concerned. The debate over re-authorization could further intensify the conflict between agriculture and bee protection.

The coming weeks are considered decisive for the further course of events. Observers expect the draft law to be put to a vote in the National Assembly before the summer break. Should it find a majority there, the French Constitutional Council is likely to be called upon to review its compatibility with EU law.