Cases / Pesticides and agrochemicals · European Union · 2018–2026
EU banned-pesticide exports
Nature's voice · report
No measurement of the harm done to me here is on record.
Did nature suffer? Not measured.
What the record lacks: 3 none on record · 2 insufficient · 1 not measured · 1 disputed · 1 unclear See the gaps
Exports from EU countries of pesticides banned in EU fields rose from about 81,000 tonnes in 2018 to about 122,000 tonnes in 2024, according to Public Eye, despite a 2020 Commission pledge.
about 122,000 tEU exports of pesticides banned in EU fields, 2024
Up from about 81,000 t in 2018 (+50%), per Public Eye (23 September 2025).
Up from about 81,000 t in 2018 (+50%), per Public Eye (23 September 2025).
Status As of the latest material reviewed (Public Eye, 23 September 2025; Commission position reported for June 2026): exports of about 122,000 t in 2024; no ruling or penalty found.
What?
Exports from EU countries of pesticides banned for use in the EU. Public Eye
Where?
From EU countries, mainly Germany, to 93 countries including Brazil and Kenya. Public Eye
When?
2018 to 2024 (Public Eye, 23 September 2025); Commission position reported for June 2026. Public Eye
Who?
Gained
- BASF — Largest exporter, over 33,000 t in 2024. Public Eye
Lost
None on recordHarmed
- Kenyan farmers — Reported to bear the cost of destroying produce rejected at the EU border for residues.
Why?
The Commission was reported to say a ban would shift production outside the EU.
How?
Through export notifications and approvals for pesticides banned in the EU. Public Eye
6 of 6 questions answered from the record
What happened
The record, in order.
Public Eye reported in September 2025 that EU countries approved the export in 2024 of about 122,000 tonnes of pesticides banned in their own fields, up from 81,000 tonnes in 2018 (an increase of about 50%). The exports went to 93 countries; 75% of the destination countries were low- or middle-income. BASF was the largest exporter, with more than 33,000 tonnes, and Brazil, with about 15,000 tonnes, was the second-largest recipient.
Germany's exports of these pesticides rose from 8,000 tonnes to more than 50,000 tonnes over the same period. France was reported to have banned such exports in 2022, after which Syngenta was reported to have moved some operations to Germany.
The European Commission had pledged in 2020 to ban such exports. The Public Eye report was titled as showing a sharp rise despite the Commission's promises. The Commission was reported to have withdrawn the pledge in June 2026, giving as its reason that a ban would shift production outside the EU.
Kenya was reported to receive these pesticides, to have Kenyan farmers bear the cost of destroying produce rejected at the EU border for residues, and to have banned 77 pesticides in June 2025. No penalty is recorded.
- 2018About 81,000 t of banned pesticides notified for export from the EU
- 2020Commission pledge to ban exports of pesticides banned in the EU
- 2022France bans such exports; Syngenta reported to move some operations to Germany
- 2024About 122,000 t approved for export; BASF over 33,000 t
- 2025Public Eye report, 23 September; Kenya reported to ban 77 pesticides in June
- 2026Commission reported to withdraw the 2020 pledge, citing production shifting outside the EU
What was said
Claims, in the words of those who made them.
Where accounts differ
Each party's account, side by side, with its source. The record does not settle these points; it shows them.
Should the EU ban exports of pesticides it has banned for use on its own fields?
Communities and civil society
Public Eye
Exports of banned pesticides rose about 50% between 2018 and 2024 despite the Commission's promises.
Public EyeInternational bodies
European Commission
Reported (June 2026) to have withdrawn the 2020 pledge, on the grounds that a ban would shift production outside the EU.
Company or project
BASF, Syngenta, Corteva
No public response on record in the sources reviewed.
How it looked
What was shown, beside what was recorded.
Shown
- A 2020 Commission pledge to end exports of pesticides banned in the EU.European Commission, as described by Public Eye · Public Eye
Recorded
- Exports of EU-banned pesticides from EU countries rose from about 81,000 t (2018) to about 122,000 t (2024), a rise of about 50%.
- Exports reached 93 countries; 75% of the destination countries were low- or middle-income. BASF exported more than 33,000 t; Brazil received about 15,000 t.
- Germany's exports rose from 8,000 t to more than 50,000 t.
- No penalty is recorded.
Who gained
Money that reached nature, beside money that stayed elsewhere.
Reached nature or the ground
Not published
No figure published.
Gained elsewhere
Not totalled
Currency: EUR · Window: 2018–2024. All figures cover the same period. * Estimate built from cited figures.
Responses on record
- european-commission (June 2026): Reported to have withdrawn its 2020 pledge in June 2026, saying a ban would shift production outside the EU.
In court and with insurers
Every proceeding and every insurer decision on record.
Lawsuits and rulings
No court case on record. No court has ruled on this case.
Insurers
No insurer decision on record.
What nature saw
Outcomes measured on the ground, and nature's note.
Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.
Exports of EU-banned pesticides, 2018
81,000 t
Approximate (Public Eye)
Exports of EU-banned pesticides, 2024
122,000 t
Approximate (Public Eye); +50%
Share going to low- and middle-income countries
75%
Of destination countries (Public Eye)
What we don't know
Undisclosed, unproven, untried: recorded as data.
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: No independent ecological evaluation is on record.
Court
- None on record No court case on record.
Accounts
- Disputed Should the EU ban exports of pesticides it has banned for use on its own fields?
- None on record BASF, Syngenta, Corteva: No public response on record in the sources reviewed.
Record
- Insufficient Reported but not independently verified: EU companies planned exports of 13,274 t of neonicotinoids banned in the EU in 2021, with the Netherlands fifth (Public Eye and Unearthed, via Greenpeace NL).
- Insufficient Reported but not independently verified: a Foodwatch (2024) comparison of Dutch export notifications with EU border findings of banned substances on imported food.
- None on record No ecological or health assessment tied to these exports is given in the sources reviewed.
- Unclear No ruling or penalty is recorded.
Did the harm stop?
Not stopped: exports rose between 2018 and 2024 according to Public Eye.
Who paid?
Reported to include Kenyan farmers, who bear destruction costs for rejected produce (no URL in the sources reviewed).
Sources
Voices on record: — Company or project— Government and regulators— Courts— Press and investigations✓ Communities and civil society— Researchers
Communities and civil society
- Sharp rise in EU export trade in banned pesticides despite European Commission promisesPublic Eye · 2025-09-23
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