In our current world where A.I. is taking over and data is king; it comes as a surprise that the UK does not have accurate data on the pesticides that are being pumped into our environment. Having said that, it doesn’t come as a surprise to those of us who [...]
A new study published in Frontiers in Public Health shows that over 400 million of the world’s farmers and farmworkers suffer from acute pesticide poisoning annually. This total excludes the 84 million children working in global agriculture who are even more vulnerable to toxic chemicals than adults, as well as rural [...]
Fidra are an environmental charity working to prevent pollution and other harms to the environment through science-based solutions and collaborative systemic change. For almost a decade, Fidra has been investigating the impacts of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), from their use in everyday consumer products such as food packaging and [...]
by Nick Mole, Policy Manager, PAN UK Earlier this year, CropLife, the trade body that represents the UK pesticide industry, published a report that exposed their goals to protect profits and resist regulations that might impact their sales. As proposed under the new UK-EU SPS agreement, the UK’s farmers, food [...]
Analysis of official government data – launched today by PAN UK – reveals that the amount of glyphosate being applied to UK crops has risen from 200 metric tonnes per year in 1990 to more than 2,200 tonnes in 2024. Major increases have been seen on a wide range of [...]
As Parliament prepares to debate the Water Reform Bill, PAN UK joins over 40 organisations - representing more than 9 million supporters collectively – calling on the UK Government to deliver urgent changes. Just 14% of English rivers are in Good Ecological Condition. Most water-dependent habitats in England’s protected [...]
A new study, launched today, has found residues of the weedkiller glyphosate and its toxic breakdown product – AMPA – in English playgrounds. PAN UK tested samples of soil and plant material and swabbed children’s play equipment in thirteen playgrounds across three English counties and two London boroughs. None of the [...]
Powerful commercial actors and the actions they take, affect us all, every day of our lives – many are undermining our health, our choices as individuals and the sustainability of the planet. They shape what we see, eat, and do. There is overwhelming evidence that the actions of many commercial [...]
The government’s long-awaited Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) launched on 1st December. While those concerned with protecting human health and the natural environment will be bitterly disappointed, pesticide companies – and their associates in the industrial farming lobby – must be rubbing their hands with glee. Their lobbying is clearly working! [...]
PAN UK is delighted with this week’s reset deal which commits the UK to following EU existing and future pesticide standards. While far from perfect, the EU’s pesticide standards are the strongest in the world in terms of protecting human health and the environment, and the UK played a seminal [...]
We are pleased that the UK Government has today announced the UK’s first ever pesticide reduction target of 10%. While we had hoped for a higher percentage, the adoption of a target, which takes into account both how much of a pesticide is used and how toxic it is, is [...]
Calling on our new government to undo the damage done to UK pesticide standards As we prepare to head off to Labour Party Conference this weekend, our minds are focused on what actions need to be taken by the new government to reduce pesticide-related harms to both human health and [...]
Analysis launched today has revealed that the Conservative government attacked pesticide residue safety limits on a range of common GB food items including blackberries, grapes, onions and potatoes. Between 2022 and 2024, safety limits were weakened for 115 types of produce. While most of the food types affected are fruit [...]
Calling for the UK government to ban the use of pesticides in publicly run areas of our villages, towns and cities. As part of the Pesticide Collaboration, PAN UK is supporting a new campaign calling on the UK government to ban the use of pesticides in places such as playgrounds, [...]
New research reveals that many common UK food items contain PFAS pesticides. PAN UK analysed the latest results from the UK government’s residue testing programme, finding that ten different PFAS pesticides were present in spices and a range of fruit and vegetables including grapes, cherries, spinach and tomatoes. Strawberries were [...]
By Natalie Bennett (kindly reproduced with permission from the author, the original article can be found here) Pesticides: anyone who has followed my work will know I have spoken at length and on multiple occasions, about the vast and uncontrolled environmental damage that these products cause. Now, it is becoming clearer by the [...]
36 pesticides permitted for use in UK but not EU, despite government promises to maintain standards post-Brexit The UK is increasingly falling behind the EU in removing chemicals that pose a risk to human health and the environment from the market. Analysis has revealed that there are now 36 pesticides [...]
by William Wilson, Barrister, Wyeside Consulting UK government proposals to dispense with all remaining EU “retained law” carried over from Brexit include plans to revoke 570 pieces of environmental legislation by the end of 2023. Every aspect of environmental legislation (water, air quality, waste, chemicals, pesticides), and laws on agriculture, [...]
Never has the UK more needed a plan to ensure our food system is sustainable, healthy and equitable than in the current climate of food insecurity, rising prices and food related health issues. It was encouraging to see the government taking an important step forward when it announced it was [...]
British shoppers are unknowingly buying supermarket chicken that is linked to the poisoning of people and rare tropical animals in the Amazon in a “hidden scandal”, according to the Soil Association’s new ‘Stop Poison Poultry’ campaign. Vital Latin American ecosystems are falling victim to the toxic chemicals sprayed on soya [...]
