16 June 2008, Greenpeace

Greenpeace publishes pesticides industry ranking
Bayer pesticides are most damaging for humans and the environment

Brussels/Hamburg –  Pesticides manufactured by German chemical multinational Bayer  pose  the  biggest  threat  to  human  health and the environment, compared to other international producers, Greenpeace found in a  report  it published today. Syngenta (Switzerland), Monsanto (USA), BASF (Germany)  and  Dow  Chemical  (USA)  are the next to follow on the company black list.

The   Greenpeace   report,   “The   Dirty   Portfolios  of  the  Pesticides Industry”,(1)  provides  the  first-ever  ranking  of  the  world’s leading agrochemical  companies  based on the hazards and risks of their pesticides on  human  health  and the environment. The multinationals together account for  75  percent  of  the  world market, and 243 (or 46 percent) of the 512 pesticides  they  sell  worldwide are particularly hazardous for humans and for nature. The European Union is currently negotiating new legislation for the authorisation of pesticides.

“Our  ranking  shows  how  toxic  the  business of the leading agrochemical companies  still  is,”  said  Greenpeace chemicals expert Manfred Krautter. “Politicians  must  now  tighten up EU pesticide laws to protect our health and  to  preserve  biodiversity.  Pesticides  that  can cause cancer, alter genes,  and  damage  the  reproductive, endocrine or nervous system must no longer  be  authorised.  Pesticides  that  harm  bees  or  life  in aquatic environments  must  be banned from the market. The chemical industry is now using  its  significant  lobbying power to try to secure authorisation even for toxins like these.”

On average, 46 percent of the multinationals’ pesticide portfolios are made up  of  particularly  dangerous  substances.  In terms of environmental and health   protection,  another  worrying  aspect  is  that  only  inadequate information  is  available in public databases concerning the toxic effects of  another  16  percent  of  the  pesticide  components.  Even the best EU laboratories  are  unable  to  routinely  detect the residues in food of 42 percent of pesticides on the market.

“Pesticides  are  in the environment, in the food we eat and in our bodies. They  are  like  a  time  bomb,  threatening our health and many endangered animal and plant species,” Krautter said.

US  company  Monsanto  has  the  portfolio  with the highest proportion (60 percent)  of  pesticides  that  are  particularly  toxic  to humans and the environment.  However,  Monsanto  only ends up in the middle of the overall ranking  due to its small share of the market. The overall ranking not only takes  into account the hazardous properties of the various pesticides, but also the quantities that are sold worldwide.

Notes to the editor:
(1) The report can be found at www.greenpeace.eu. The ranking draws on data from  the  Greenpeace  studies  “Black  List  of Pesticides” and “Limits of Pesticide  Analysis”  published  in  January  and  February  2008. All five companies   declined  to  supply  Greenpeace  with  information  about  the pesticidal substances that they sell.
(2)  The  European  Commission put forward a proposal on new regulation for the  authorisation  of  pesticides  in  2007  and  the  European Parliament proposed  a series of amendments to strengthen legislation in October 2007. EU  agriculture  ministers are due to meet on 23 June to attempt to reach a common position on the proposal.

Contacts:
Manfred Krautter – Greenpeace Germany chemicals expert, +49 17 18 780 810
Oliver Worm – Author of the report, +491718780822
Mark  Breddy – Greenpeace EU communications manager, +32 (0)2 2741 903, +32
(0)496 15 62 29 (mob.), mark.breddy@...

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