Every year, tens of thousands of tons of highly hazardous pesticides that are banned in the European Union are nevertheless manufactured for export. These odious double standards are a form of exploitation in the fields of the Global South. While workers and their families suffer, pesticide manufacturers profit.
In 2020, the European Commission released a chemical strategy that pledged to put an end to this abhorrent practice. Yet, it has yet to propose legislation to make good on its promise.
Recognition that the human body is the same for each member of the human family, regardless of residence or skin color, should lead to effective bans on the export of prohibited pesticides.
The moral imperative for a ban on the export of banned pesticides is clear. The export from Europe of banned pesticides inflicts serious harm on individuals and communities in developing countries. Exposure to hazardous pesticides causes cancers, infertility, diabetes, neurological diseases like Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, and disorders of the endocrine and immune systems, among other harms. It affects adults, but also newborns, causing birth defects and congenital malformations, as well as neuro-developmental disabilities including reduced intelligence quotient.
People have a right to health and a right to live in dignity. The European practice of exporting banned pesticides is a blatant violation of these fundamental rights.