THE European Environment Agency (EEO) today called for a reduction in the use of pesticides, which are still widely sold in Europe, even though they pollute air, soil and water, undermine biodiversity and promote disease.

For peopleexposure to chemical pesticides, mainly through food but also through the air in rural areas, is linked to the occurrence of cardiac, respiratory and neurological diseases as well as cancersthe report emphasizes.

“We note with concern that all controlled pesticides (…) were detected at higher levels in children than in adults,” notes the EEA.

In his report, conducted mainly in Spain, Latvia, Hungary, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands from 2014 to 2021, at least two pesticides were found in the body of 84% of participants.

According to the EEA, pesticide residues were found in 83% of arable land examined in 2019.

As the organization emphasizes, the 27 EU member countries must reduce their dependence on pesticides by adopting more modern forms of agriculture.

“In Europe of 27, sales of pesticides remained relatively stable between 2011 and 2020, at around 350,000 tonnes,” the European agency notes, citing Eurostat figures.

In 2020, one or more pesticides were detected at a rate greater than that which causes concern, in 22% of the monitoring points of rivers and lakes in Europe, it underlines.

A report by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published today showed that in 2021, 96% of the foods tested did not contain pesticide residues above the permitted limits.

According to the same source, the fruit in which the highest concentration of pesticides was observed was grapefruitwhich is mainly imported.