“Authorizing the use of glyphosate without limits for 10 years is crazy,” says Christophe Béchu indignantly

2023-11-17 11:39:55

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The Minister of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion confirmed that France would continue to ban the use of this pesticide for all non-agricultural uses.

While the European Union renewed the authorization of glyphosate for 10 years on Thursday, the Minister of Ecological Transition Christophe Béchu returned this Friday morning on France Inter to the government’s position, defending the choice to abstain during this vote. “You should know that an abstention is worth voting against“, he said, before explaining that France – like Germany – had preferred to make this choice, for lack of “found an alternative position to the European position“. And to assure: “We did not manage to find enough allies, 17 countries voted in favor of the position of the commission and we, including for diplomatic reasons, voted like the Germans (…) to ensure that we continue to find allies on this subject».

The Minister of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion also announced that “this vote was not going to change anything» for France, which “will continue to ban the use of glyphosate and restrict its use». «In recent years, we are the country where the use of glyphosate has decreased the most, by 27% compared to the period 2015-2017.“, he continued, claiming to have “prohibits all uses of glyphosate for individuals and local communities”, and be working “with the agricultural professions to, little by little, agricultural uses after agricultural uses, limit or even prohibit the use of this product wherever alternatives are found».

Also readRenewal of the authorization of glyphosate: what consequences for France?

All non-agricultural uses prohibited

«France has banned all non-agricultural uses», insisted Christophe Béchu, listing all the places where the use of glyphosate was now banned, such as along SNCF tracks, in cemeteries or in equestrian centers. “And we continue, area by area, to ban this unhealthy pesticide», he promised, recalling that France was “notnot in agreement with the position of the commission for a simple reason» to the extent that this would have been, according to him, “an environmental regression». «The position of the commission which says “we authorize all uses for 10 years without limit” is crazy“, he insists.

«We are opposed to this position, we have taken responsible banning measures in a large number of cases, and we will continue to reduce usage as we have committed to doing.“, he concluded. Before confiding that “personally“, he would have “favorite» that France’s position on the extension of the authorization of glyphosate in Europe «take the form of a vote against rather than an abstention».

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