Commission opposes any 'dilution' of marketing rules

摘要

During their Council meeting of 19 May, the EU's agriculture ministers did not reach a political agreement at first reading on the draft regulation concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market, despite several weeks of preparatory work by their experts. Severely reprimanding the Slovenian EU Presidency, the European Commission, supported by Cyprus, Greece, Portugal and to a lesser extent France, managed to prevent the formation of a unanimous position by the EU27, as sought by Ljubljana, to relax the draft regulation. The Commission is opposed to any "dilution" of its synonymous text for the authorisation of products which are carcinogenic, toxic to reproduction or act as endocrine disrupters. "It is necessary to find a balance between the security of human health and access - at a reasonable level - to safe products for farmers, even for minor uses," justified the Health Commissioner, Androulla Vassiliou. "