Böll·Europe Podcast #6 | The toxic global impact of pesticides

Pesticides are largely known for their negative effects on people and the environment. These substances are meant to kill pests, but their toxicity also destroys biodiversity and causes poisoning worldwide. Pesticides can be found everywhere: in the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the water we drink. That is why many highly dangerous pesticides are banned in the European Union. Yet, they are still produced and exported to third countries, and some Member States have found loopholes to allow the use of hazardous substances in agriculture. In fact, the European Union is one of the world’s biggest markets for pesticides, with almost a quarter of all pesticides sold in the EU. It is also a top exporting region. Just in 2018, European companies planned to export 81.000 tonnes of toxic chemicals banned in their own fields. The Böll·Europe Podcast episode #6 features our Pesticide Atlas 2022. How are pesticides used today? And how can the EU slash their use to protect people’s and the planet’s health? To uncover this complex topic, Gail Rego interviews:

• Sarah Wiener, Member of the European Parliament for The Greens/EFA group. She is also a beekeeper, chef, entrepreneur and organic farmer. Her whole life revolves around the quality of food and how it is produced. In the Parliament, Sarah seats in the EP Committees on Agriculture and on Environment, fighting for sustainable farming, animal welfare and good, healthy food for everyone. As rapporteur for the new regulation on the sustainable use of pesticides (SUR), she’s currently leading the negotiations in the Parliament.
• Silke Bollmohr, a Senior Policy Advisor Global Food Policy & Agriculture at Inkota network. She also works as a freelancing independent ecotoxicologist with EcoTrac Consulting. As a permaculture practitioner, she is also trained in sustainable agricultural techniques.  She is the Co-editor of the Pesticide Atlas. She worked extensively in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.