Pesticide reduction statistics are ‘disingenuous’ say campaigners

Claims that pesticide use in UK agriculture has fallen by 50 per cent since 1990 and that it continues to drop have been challenged by anti-pesticide campaigners.

A report published by the Pesticide Action Network UK (PAN UK) claims that by most internationally accepted measures, UK pesticide use is in fact rising.

“This statistic is based purely on weight,” said Josie Cohen from PAN UK who said that as pesticides coming on to the market were more potent, less chemical was required to do the same job.

She said that this meant that using weight to compare pesticide use over time was “utterly irrelevant and disingenuous” and gave the impression that things were moving in the right direction while masking the need for stronger regulation.

Cohen claimed that statistics gathered by PAN UK had shown that, in 1990, a hectare of agricultural land was, on average, treated with pesticides 2.5 times in a growing season – but the figure had increased to 4.2 times by 2015.

“In the same time period, a hectare of UK potatoes went from being treated an average of 12.4 times to 32 times,” said Cohen.

She added that Brexit meant the UK was at a major crossroads – and while there was a danger that pesticide laws could be weakened, there was also an opportunity to strengthen controls.

And, according to Cohen, this meant that there was an urgent need to adopt a new system for monitoring pesticide use: “Without accurate data, it’s impossible to ensure that our regulatory system is fit-for-purpose and able to protect human health and environment from the toxic effects of pesticides.”