EU to widen ban on pesticides harming bees

The European Union will widen a ban on pesticides linked to harming bees, a move that could threaten output of some crops and put pressure on insecticide makers such as Bayer and Syngenta, Bloomberg reports.

EU governments voted Friday in Brussels to prohibit the use of neonicotinoids everywhere except greenhouses. Sixteen nations approved the restriction proposed by the European Commission, leading to a positive result under "weighted-majority" rules. The measure will be adopted by the commission, the EU’s regulatory arm, in the coming weeks and take effect by year-end.

"Neonicotinoids, which are used as seed coatings and protect plants from pests, were banned by EU regulators in 2013 for use on rapeseed, sunflowers and corn after some studies linked them to unintended deaths of bees. Today’s vote follows a review by the European Food Safety Authority in February, which concluded the chemicals pose risks to bee health," the message writes.

The wider ban will apply to three neonicotinoids: clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam.

Some industry groups have argued that a ban could curb production of crops such as wheat and sugar beet. Stopping the use of neonicotinoids may lead to a drop in EU sugar-beet yields, with estimates ranging between 10 percent and 49 percent, according to the International Confederation of European Beet Growers, known as CIBE. 

Earlier it was reported that the European Business Association (EBA) had addressed an open letter to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on the urgent adoption of Bill No. 6606 "On Amendments to Article 4 of the Law of Ukraine" On Pesticides and Agrochemicals "on the Importation of Pesticides into the Customs Territory of Ukraine."