EU member states have agreed a negotiating position on a package of changes to simplify food and feed safety rules, covering areas from pesticide residues in imports to approvals for plant protection and biocidal products.
The move forms part of the EU’s “Omnibus X” simplification package, which is intended to cut administrative burdens while keeping existing standards on food and feed safety, and protection of human and animal health and the environment, the Council of the EU said in a release on Wednesday.
The Council’s mandate covers, among other files, rules on maximum residue levels (MRLs) — legal limits for pesticide residues in food and feed — as well as legislation on plant protection products and biocidal products.
Ireland’s Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence Thomas Byrne said the Council had taken “another step forward” on the package and that the presidency would work towards agreeing the text with the European Parliament by the end of the year.
Changes on pesticide residues, pesticides and biocides
On MRLs, the Council said the proposed changes address residues in imported food or feed from certain pesticides no longer permitted in the EU because of their hazardous properties, including substances that can be carcinogenic, toxic for reproduction, disrupt the endocrine system or have long-term environmental effects.
The mandate keeps the Commission’s approach of lowering existing MRLs to “technical zero” for particularly hazardous substances after an impact assessment, and expands the scope to include substances whose conditions of use lead to unacceptable risks to honeybees or groundwater.
The Council also backed transitional provisions for products that complied with previous MRLs before they are lowered, allowing them to remain on the market for a limited period to avoid food waste.
On plant protection products — pesticides used in agriculture — the Council said it would prioritise the assessment of “biocontrol substances”, and grant unlimited approvals and authorisations for “low-risk active substances” and products containing them.
For other substances, it supported extending approval periods to 15 years for a first approval and 25 years for subsequent approvals, with exceptions.
The mandate also extends protection periods for tests and study reports linked to authorisations — from 10 to 13 years for first authorisation of regular products, and from 13 to 15 years for low-risk products — with the reports to be uploaded to a new EU-level database.
For biocidal products, used to control harmful organisms such as pests or bacteria, the Council said it would keep approvals for active substances with an expiry date but extend the period to 15 years for first approvals and 25 years for renewals.
Separately, the package includes simplification measures for feed additives, including removing systematic renewal requirements for most authorised additives, streamlining changes to existing authorisations and enabling digital labelling for certain information.
It also includes changes to clarify that fermentation products made using genetically modified microorganisms are not classed as food or feed “produced from GMOs”, alongside measures including Commission guidance on good manufacturing practices to minimise residual genetically modified material.
Negotiations with the European Parliament are due to begin once it adopts its position, with the Council presidency aiming for a provisional agreement on the overall package by the end of 2026.
