The authoritsation of pesticides (plant protection products) in the EU is regulated by Directive 91/414/EEC, which foresees that each ingredient and the final product itself must be submitted to a large range of tests to evaluate their safety for humans and the environment. Each ingredient tested requires the use of as many as 6500 animals. All tests are obligatory and a tick-box approach is followed. This means a set number of tests must be done, whatever their relevance to the ingredient concerned and the knowledge already available.

The European Commission has recently revised its legislation on the placing on the market of plant protection products.

The Commission proposal was published on 12 July 2006. The European Parliament approved the compromise text of the European Commission, Parliament and Council on the placing on the market of plant protection products in January 2009.

The text provides relatively satisfactory guarantees for the protection of research animals used for the testing of these products.

An agreement has been reached before the Council of the EU (member state ministers) and the new legislation was adopted in September 2009.

The revision aimed to reinforce the protection of public health and the environment, contribute to sustainable development in agriculture, boost competitiveness for producers and increase the availability of plant protection products to farmers.

Eurogroup worked with Members of the European Parliament and with Member States to ensure that in the new legislation animal testing is limited where possible and replaced with non-animal alternatives.

Eurogroup called for:

European Union

Directive 91/414 (Jul. 91)

Commission Revision Proposal (Jul. 06)

EFSA Opinion on toxicological data requirements (Jan. 07)

Eurogroup documents

Eurogroup briefing (Feb. 07)