Public Webinar: Pathways for advancing pesticide policies

Despite substantial efforts in the last decade, there is little evidence that Europe has achieved a reduction in pesticide risks and impacts mandated in National Action Plans. Upcoming agricultural policy reforms in Switzerland and other European countries as well as the recently launched “From Farm to Fork” strategy present an important opportunity to advance current pesticide policies.

In a recently published Nature Food article  ‘external page Pathways for advancing pesticide policies,’ a consortium of researchers suggest key steps to achieve a reduction in pesticide risks. For example, new technologies and regulatory frameworks need to be implemented and aligned with all actors in food value chains. The authors outline a holistic approach to advancing pesticide policies, which accounts for the major trade-offs and areas of tension with other agricultural policy goals.

In a public webinar, several authors of the article came together to discuss key challenges and present pathways for advancing European pesticide policies. In presentations and discussions, the panelists provided insights into selected areas such as best policy practices, new technological approaches, farmer behavior, and efficient policy designs.

The Webinar was co-hosted by the World Food System Center and the Agricultural Economics and Policy Group of ETH Zurich.

Date: 20 October 2020
Time: 11:00-12:30 CET
Location: Zoom Webinar

Program:

• Welcome: Robert Finger, ETH Zurich Download Download presentation slides (PDF, 774 KB)
  
• Spotlight Presentations on the topic “Towards effective pesticide risk reduction”:
  
  • external page Per Kudsk, Aarhus University: Setting targets and employing pesticide taxes Download Download presentation slides (PDF, 423 KB)
    
  • Bruno Studer, ETH Zurich: Reducing pesticide use at its base through plant breeding Download Download presentation slides (PDF, 2 MB)
    
  • Niklas Möhring, ETH Zurich: Effective and efficient pest management decisions of farmers Download Download presentation slides (PDF, 1.8 MB)
    
  • external page Karin Ingold, University of Bern & Eawag: Cross-sectoral policies and multi-level regulation Download Download presentation slides (PDF, 651 KB)
• Panelist Discussion with Questions from Audience