Archive:Pesticide sales statistics

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Data from July 2015. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database. Planned article update: (dd) Month YYYY(, hh:00).

This article focuses on data covering the sale of pesticides from national industries in EU Member States and aims to give an overview of the latest available information in the European Union (EU).

The use of pesticides in agriculture has helped to improve yields and to prevent crop losses. Pesticides include active ingredients that in spite of the beneficial actions on agricultural production could have other less positive impacts on the environment and habitats where they are used. Data on the sale of pesticides are used in the agri-environmental indicator on consumption of pesticides.

Regulation (EC) No1185/2009 is the legal base for the data on pesticide sales and it outlines the definitions and list of active substances. The data collected is the active substance contained in the pesticides and is categorised into 6 major groups according to the action of the pesticide.

Table 1: Pesticide sales by major groups, 2013
(kilograms)
Source: Eurostat (aei_fm_salpest09)

Figure 1: Share of pesticide sales by major groups, 2013
(%)
Source: Eurostat (aei_fm_salpest09)

Figure 2: Pesticide sales by major groups, EU-28, 2013 (^¹)
(%)
Source: Eurostat (aei_fm_salpest09)

Figure 3: Pesticide sales by major groups, by country, 2013
(tonnes)
Source: Eurostat (aei_fm_salpest09)

Figure 4: Pesticide sales by UAA (¹), by country, 2013
(kilograms per hectare)
Source: Eurostat (aei_fm_salpest09); (apro_cpp_luse)

Main statistical findings

In 2013, the total quantity of pesticide sales amounted to close to 360 000 tonnes. Spain (19.5 %), France (18.7 %), Italy (13.8 %), Germany (12.3 %) and Poland (6.2 %) were the Member States that sold the highest quantities of pesticides, and together they made up 70.5 % of the EU-28’s pesticide sales (see Table 1 and Figure 1).

Fungicides and bactericides were the most sold group of pesticides with a 42 % share, followed by herbicides, haulm destructors and moss killers with 35 % of the total. Together with the group ‘Other plant protection products’ (13 %), the three groups added up to 91 % of the pesticides sold in the EU-28 in 2013. Of the other three groups of pesticides, insecticides and acaricides had a 5 % share of the total, plant growth regulators 3 % and molluscicides held the smallest share of pesticides sales with 1 % (see Figure 2).

Looking at individual EU Member States, the pattern for pesticides groups followed the distribution of the total amount of sold pesticides with the four major sellers (Spain, France, Italy and Germany) also top ranking by groups (see Figure 3).

The largest quantities of both insecticides and acaricides (6.7 thousand tonnes) and other plant protection products (17.3 thousand tonnes) were placed on the market in Spain. At 32.9 thousand tonnes, Italy had the highest sales of fungicides and bactericides, France ranked top for herbicides, haulm destructors and moss killers with a share of 27.8 thousand tonnes and also in molluscicides with 1.1 thousand tonnes of sales. At 2.9 thousand tonnes in 2013, Germany had the highest share of sold plant growth regulators.

There were exceptions to the pattern of the top four countries. In Poland for instance, 12.5 thousand tonnes of herbicides, haulm destructors and moss killers, 1.3 thousand tonnes of insecticides and acaricides and 1.5 thousand tonnes of plant growth regulators were sold. The United Kingdom also ranked in the top four for sales of molluscicides and plant growth regulators (0.1 thousand tonnes), while sales of other plant protection products were fourth highest in the Netherlands (3.0 thousand tonnes).

The quantities of pesticides that are put on the market yearly can be associated with other statistics directly related to the use of the pesticides. In Figure 4, the quantities of sold pesticides are compared to each country's utilised agricultural area (UAA), and the Member States are ranked by the amount of pesticides (kilograms-kg) per hectare (ha) of UAA. Bulgaria had the smallest proportion of pesticide sales per ha with 0.24 kg/ha. Estonia, Ireland, Latvia, Sweden, Romania, Lithuania and the United Kingdom all had quantities of sold pesticides under 1 kilogram.

Among the top four countries having the highest pesticides sales, only Italy ranked in the top four of pesticide sales per hectare with 4.01 kg/ha. With a value of 13.59 kg/ha, Malta recorded the highest quantity of pesticides per hectare, mainly due to the influence of the Mediterranean climate. In Malta the most active substance sold and used is Sulphur, which covers around 65% of total sales and also around 90% of total active substances used.

The Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Germany and France all had amounts of pesticides sold per hectare above 2 kg/ha.

Data sources and availability

The data on sales of pesticides from national industries is available in two different series:

Data series 1997-2008

This collection presents data on sales of plant protection products communicated by EU Member States and Norway on the basis of a ‘gentlemen’s agreement’.

Data series from reference year 2011 onward

This collection is based Regulation (EC) No 1185/2009 concerning statistics on pesticides establishes a common framework for the systematic production of Community statistics on the placing on the market and use of those pesticides which are plant protection products. The current article focusses on this data series.

Context

As a result of their potential toxicity, often even at very low levels, the application of pesticides is strictly controlled by Community legislation since 1991 (by national legislation prior to 1991). Policy control measures in the EU are driven by the objectives of protecting human health and the environment (consumers, operator safety, protection of water quality and biodiversity).

The most important legislation with regard to pesticides are as follows:

Directive 0128/2009 establishing a framework for Community action to achieve the sustainable use of pesticides;
Regulation 1107/2009 concerning the placing of plant protection products on the market.
Regulation 0083/1998 on the quality of water intended for human consumption (Drinking Water Directive) which stipulates a maximum concentration of 0.1 μg/l (which in practice means the absence) for any single pesticide and its relevant metabolites (maximum of 0.5 μg/l for total pesticides) in potable water;
Directive 0060/2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy (Water Framework Directive) which identifies a large number of particularly toxic, persistent or bioaccumulative polluting substances in Annex VIII including organophosphate compounds.

Other relevant legislation include:

Directive 0105/2008 on environmental quality standards in the field of water policy,
Directive 0032/2002 on undesirable substances in animal feed,
Regulation 0396/2005 on maximum residue levels of pesticides in or on food and feed of plant and animal origin.

In addition to controls on impacts such as the Drinking Water Directive, a number of EU Member States have introduced specific measures to restrict use involving the introduction of pesticide taxes (e.g. DK and SE), and/or government targets for reducing pesticide use (e.g. NL target of 50 % reduction by 2000 in terms of weight of active ingredients compared with the reference period 1984–88).

In 2002 the European Commission adopted a communication ‘Towards a thematic strategy on the sustainable use of pesticides’ (COM final 0349/2002) following the mandate to develop a thematic strategy in the Sixth Environment Action Programme. The Commission Communication contained a description of the current situation regarding pesticides and related areas at EU and Member State level. A number of objectives are identified and analysed. The subsequent Thematic Strategy on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides (COM final 0372/2006) was adopted in 2006.

Further Eurostat information

Publications

Agriculture, forestry and fishery statistics — 2014 edition (Pocketbook)
Environmental statistics and accounts in Europe — 2010 edition
Figures for the future — 2010 edition
Sustainable development in the European Union — 2011 monitoring report on the EU sustainable development strategy - Sustainable development in the European Union

Database

Agriculture forestry and fisheries

Agri-environmental indicators (aei)

Farm management (aei_fm)

Pesticide sales (aei_fm_salpest09)

Dedicated sections

Methodology / Metadata

Pesticide sales - Reg. 1185/2009 (aei_fm_salpest09) (ESMS metadata file — aei_fm_salpest09)

Source data for tables, figures and maps (MS Excel)

Pesticides sales - Tables and figures

Other information

Staff working document SEC (2006) 1136] - Development of agri-environmental indicators for monitoring the integration of environmental concerns into the common agricultural policy

Agri-Environmental Indicators, see:

Commission Communication COM(2006)508 final

External links