US trade deal could open door to pesticide use, report warns

Post-Brexit trade deals could be “catastrophic” for British farmers by forcing them to choose between domestic and EU markets if they lead to a lowering of standards on pesticides, a new report has warned. Trade deals with the US, Australia and India that allow imports with higher pesticide use would force farmers to choose between lowering their own standards or risk losing trade to the European Union, which has much more stringent controls, says the report from Pesticide Action Network UK, charity Sustain and trade expert Dr Emily Lydgate It comes alongside polling by YouGov that shows 71 per cent of the British public are concerned that a US trade deal could lead to more pesticide in their food, and want the Government to push back on attempts to overturn bans, even if that means sacrificing the “best” trade deal. The US has previously challenged the EU’s standards on pesticides, arguing in a statement to the World Trade Organisation last July that the regulations were “unnecessarily and inappropriately” restricting trade. The statement was backed by 15 other countries, including Australia, Brazil and Canada. “In an already uncertain economic climate, the lowering of pesticide standards could be catastrophic for UK farming as well as the environment,” Vicki Hird, Farm Campaign Coordinator at Sustain said. “Sixty per cent of UK agricultural exports currently go to the EU so this could finish off many farming businesses.” The report highlights several pesticides that are currently banned in the UK under laws from the EU which have been transferred. They include chlorpyrifos, which has been shown to negatively affect the cognitive development of foetuses and young children and which is used by farmers in the US and India. Both farming and environmental groups have raised concerns that trade deals could lead to a lowering of welfare standards. More than 800,000 people have signed a petition calling for legal changes to ensure uniform standards on domestic production and imports. The government has repeatedly said it will not undermine environmental protection, animal welfare and food safety standards in any trade deal with the US. But it is ready to allow the import of chlorinated chicken and other food produced to lower standards, with higher tariffs to keep British produce competitive.

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