France Reauthorizes Banned Pesticides Over Bee Warnings — SkimNews
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- French parliament approved a bill Tuesday reauthorizing two pesticides banned in France but allowed in the EU, with the senate passing it 214-111; the law lets food safety agency Anses grant waivers for struggling sectors including sugar beet, apples, hazelnuts, and cherries
- UNAF spokesperson Henri Clément called the measure "scandalous, irrational and irresponsible," warning of "very high mortality rates and reduced harvests," while beekeeper Yves Delaunay reported his honey output collapsed from 80kg to 5kg per hive after neonicotinoids were introduced in the 1990s
- Environment Minister Monique Barbut submitted her resignation Wednesday, calling the vote "one environmental setback too many," but reversed her decision after President Emmanuel Macron gave her "guarantees" on climate action goals
- FNSEA, France's largest farmers' union, and Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard welcomed the bill as "a major milestone and a victory for French farmers" providing "real and tangible solutions" to growers
- Greenpeace France accused the centrist government and rightwing allies of "trampling on science, health, the environment and the clear will of the people," describing the legislation as "deeply concerning"
- Beekeepers, environmentalists, and left-leaning MPs plan to refer the new law to the constitutional council — a prior similar bill reauthorising acetamiprid was annulled by the council last year for violating France's environmental charter, despite a petition against it that gathered 2 million signatures
Why it matters: France is reversing a 30-year beekeeper-led fight to keep acetamiprid and flupyradifurone banned, and the constitutional council referral gives opponents a concrete path to block it again — the council already killed a similar law last year. The environment minister's resignation-then-retreat shows the Macron government could not hold the line against right-wing agricultural pressure, leaving bee populations further exposed at a moment when French honey production has already halved since the mid-1990s.
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