The European Union and the United Kingdom are exporting thousands of tons of banned neonicotinoid pesticides to low and middle income countries, including South Africa, which was one of the top 10 importers.
An investigation by Unearthed and Public Eye has shown how, between September and December last year, EU countries issued notices of plans to export more than 3 800 tonnes of these pesticides — thiamethoxam, imidacloprid or clothianidin — which were banned for outdoor use in the EU in 2018 because of the environmental damage they cause, particularly to key pollinators such as bees.
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