For the very first time in the EU, a pesticide product has been banned following a long court case. The pesticide product Pitcher, containing the endocrine-disrupting pesticide fludioxonil, shall no longer be used in the Netherlands from May 2027. This decision was taken by the Dutch pesticide authority Ctgb, following a court order, after an appeal by Pesticide Action Network Europe and a subsequent ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU.
Hans Muilerman, Senior Chemicals Officer at PAN Europe said: “The EU law is clear: new scientific evidence must be taken into account in the decision making but the Dutch pesticide authority refused to implement the law. Many more fludioxonil-containing pesticide formulations are still authorised in the Netherlands and still need to be banned.”
Fludioxonil is a widely used endocrine-disrupting fungicide, the use of which has roughly tripled in the Netherlands since 2010. It is frequently detected in residue tests carried out on fruit and vegetables. Since 2011, endocrine-disrupting pesticides should be banned where exposure to humans and the environment cannot be avoided. In 2018, the Commission established scientific criteria for the identification of endocrine disruptors (EDs), which led to the identification of fludioxonil as an endocrine disruptor in 2024. Despite this, Fludioxonil is still approved in the EU, jointly with 11 other endocrine disrupting pesticides, because the Von der Leyen II European Commission has significantly slowed down the procedure to ban them.
This case led to a question for preliminary ruling sent to the Court of Justice of the EU, where the Court highlighted that national authorities had the obligation to take into account the latest scientific evidence on the toxicity of pesticide substances. In its new decision on the appeal, the Ctgb has recognised the EFSA conclusion that the active substance fludioxonil is an ED. Even in very low concentrations, they can be harmful, particularly to pregnant women and young children. An exception to the ban applies in the case the pesticide is used in a closed system or other circumstances where human and environmental exposure is considered 'negligible', including via residues on food. The use of Pitcher does not meet these exception criteria. The Ctgb thus finally acknowledged what PAN has been arguing since the first appeal in October 2019. Nevertheless, to protect to the extent possible the interests of industry and agriculture, Pitcher is not being banned immediately; instead, a transition period applies until May 2027.
What does this mean for other endocrine-disrupting pesticides?
In the Netherlands alone, fludioxonil is still present in 23 other authorised pesticide products for agriculture and horticulture. In addition, there are roughly 30 other pesticide products containing substances that the European authorities have shown to be endocrine disruptors. PAN-NL has submitted a request to the Ctgb to withdraw the authorisation for all of these roughly 50 pesticides, the authorisation for which must be withdrawn under European legislation.
What are the EU Commission and Member States waiting for?
Many substances are still in use while they have officially been identified as endocrine disruptors by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). But the EU decision process is terribly slow. As a result very harmful pesticides remain on the market for too long, and files pile up. Instead of taking the necessary action, banning substances that need to be banned, they came up with even more bureaucratic solutions in the Food and Feed Safety Omnibus. Now finally on the agenda of the SCoPAFF meeting 12 and 13 November [1] there is a proposal to initiate a discussion on the ban of more endocrine disrupting substances, including fludioxonil, but this is still not put to a vote of Member States.
Dr. Angeliki Lyssimachou, Head of Science and Policy said: “As early as 2015, scientists sounded the alarm that the health costs of exposure to endocrine disruptors in the EU court exceed 157 billion euros annually, with pesticides making a significant contribution. [3] There should be no room for debate: once a substance is identified as an endocrine disruptor, the law mandates its ban. The cost of inaction. measures in human health impacts and healthcare costs, far outweighs the cost of transitioning to pesticide-free agriculture.”
More information: decision by Ctgb on Pitcher
Contact:
Hans Muilerman, Senior Chemicals Officer, PAN Europe, hans [at] pan-europe.info, +31 6 55 80 72 55
Tjerk Dalhuisen, communication officer, tjerk [at] pan-europe.info, +31 6146 99 126
Notes:
[1] EU Member States do not properly carry our Risk Assessments, PAN Europe
[2] Agenda SCoPAFF meeting 12 and 13 Novembre 2026
[3[ Estimating Burden and Disease Costs of Exposure to Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals, European Union Journal of Clinical Endocrinology 2015
