EU and Mercosur clash over pesticide standards ahead of trade deal. JAN 15, 2026.

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EU and Mercosur clash over pesticide standards ahead of trade deal.

The Green Amazon News | News

As the European Union and Mercosur move closer to finalizing a long-awaited free trade agreement, sharp differences over pesticide regulations have resurfaced — particularly between the EU and Brazil, the bloc’s largest agricultural exporter.

Regulatory data show significant contrasts between European and Brazilian standards for approving agricultural chemicals. While the European Union applies stricter rules, Brazil continues to authorize the use of numerous active ingredients that are banned for use by European farmers due to health and environmental risks.

Brazil accounts for roughly 80 percent of the European Union’s agricultural trade with Mercosur countries. Cross-checked information from regulatory agencies indicates that a substantial share of pesticides approved in Brazil lack authorization in the EU, mainly because of concerns related to toxicity, impacts on pollinators, and endocrine disruption.

Although EU law requires imported products to comply with maximum residue limits, European farmers and environmental groups argue that controls remain insufficient to prevent foods grown with banned substances from entering the European market. In response, the European Commission has recently announced plans to prohibit imports containing residues of certain fungicides that are already banned within the bloc.

Some member states have adopted even stricter measures. France, for example, has suspended imports of products containing residues of pesticides classified as endocrine disruptors or suspected of causing reproductive harm.

At the same time, environmental organizations have criticized what they describe as a European “double standard.” Independent investigations indicate that chemical companies based in Europe continue to manufacture and export large quantities of pesticides banned for domestic use to Mercosur countries, with Brazil emerging as one of the world’s largest markets for these substances.

As negotiations progress, the issue is expected to remain under scrutiny, raising broader questions about regulatory consistency, environmental responsibility, and the global impacts of agricultural trade.

The Green Amazon News

Sources

• European Commission – Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE)

• European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)

• European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)

• Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (Anvisa)

• Reports by Public Eye and Greenpeace

• European Union agricultural trade data