On February 11, local time, German Federal Development Minister Schulze said that in view of millions of people around the world being harmed by accidental pesticide poisoning, Germany will ban the export of dangerous pesticides to other countries.
Schulzer also criticized pesticide production companies for increasingly selling dangerous pesticides banned by the European Union on the African continent. "For smallholder farmers in developing countries, relying on credit to obtain resistant seeds and corresponding pesticides is an unacceptable business model," she said. Schultzer hopes to increase cooperation with partner countries in organic farming cooperation in the field to jointly promote the sustainable development of agriculture.
The German Association for the Protection of Environment and Nature and the Heinrich Bohr Foundation have also called for strict restrictions on the use of pesticides and a ban on the export of pesticides that are prohibited from being sold within the EU.
Global pesticide use has increased by 80% since 1990, according to the newly published Pesticide Handbook 2022. The increasing use of pesticides has led to an increase in poisonings, especially in Africa and Asia. According to the report, there are about 255 million pesticide poisoning accidents in Asia each year, more than 100 million in Africa, and about 1.6 million in Europe.