05 March Event: "Towards a Just Transition: IPM, Biocontrol and the Path Beyond Pesticides" at the European Parliament

Together with my colleague Dario Nardella MEP, we explored the question of how sustainable agriculture with fewer pesticides is possible at the event "Towards a Just Transition: IPM, Biocontrol and the Path Beyond Pesticides" that we organized in the European Parliament.

Experts from science, agriculture and civil society presented possible solutions. Particularly noteworthy are the findings from the SPRINT project on the health effects of pesticides - not only on citizens, but especially on farmers and agricultural workers - as well as the discussions with farmers and organic control experts on safe alternatives.

I was delighted by the participation of Maria Pilar Aguar Fernandez, Director in the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, and Catherine Geslaine-Lanéelle, Director in the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development of the European Commission. Their contributions highlighted the importance of a joint approach at political level in order to drive forward a sustainable transformation of agriculture.

The event showed once again that agriculture without synthetic pesticides is not only necessary, but also feasible - together with our farmers. This requires the correct implementation of the existing directive on the sustainable use of pesticides (SUD) and the political will for sustainable agriculture!

I would like to thank all the panelists, the co-organizers Friends of the Earth Europe, Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Europe, the European Federation of Food, Agriculture and Tourism Trade Unions (EFFAT) and the participants who enriched this event, as well as my team and Dario Nardella's team for their support in making it happen.

In the video you can see an excerpt of my greeting. The recording of the rest of the event can be found at the following link: https://c-eup-client-cuts.eu-central-1.linodeobjects.com/uploads/3de76624-ca9d-4d66-9dc2-8d9f12a36b82.mp4