The European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) has criticised the European Commission over organics, suggesting the EU is biased towards the sector and has wasted its budget.
The ECPA questioned the EC’s expenditure of more than €21 million (£18.6m) on programmes to promote organic agriculture and EU regulatory policy-makers' decision to approve key pesticides used by organic farmers, despite questions from the European Food Safety Authority.
Friedhelm Schmider, director general of the ECPA, said: “We strongly support products branded organic as a market choice for consumers. What concerns us is that European legislation is increasingly shifting away from rational, science-led decision-making towards slanted interpretations of consumer preference that are lagging behind economic, human need and production realities.
“EU policies reveal a systematic bias towards organic agriculture, even though it is, patently, a luxury market niche, not a means of mass food production. This predisposition is illustrated by official funding on projects to promote organic as well as regulatory decisions.
“Our members produce all forms of pest management products including pesticides for organic agriculture, as well as those used by more technologically advanced forms of production, so we clearly support organic products for the consumers that can afford them. But with the rise in global population, combined with pressure on limited agricultural land resulting from climate change, we need reality-based policy that prioritises productivity. We need a rethink if we’re to avoid a crisis in the all too near future.”
Earlier this month, the Soil Association, which accredits eight out of 10 organic products in the UK, released figures showing organic sales grew by 1.7 per cent in value last year and fell in volume, compared with 26 per cent growth every year since 1993.
Dominic Dyer, chief executive of the UK Crop Protection Association, said: "The organic brand is no longer a major sales driver in the UK grocery sector. Consumers are increasingly questioning the health and environmental benefits of organic food and are no longer willing to pay a price premium to go organic."
