EU moves to loosen rules on pesticide use, as experts sound the alarm

As part of its drive to "streamline and simplify" EU laws, the European Commission has proposed sweeping changes for agriculture and food safety legislation. These include a move to ease rules controlling the use of pesticides and herbicides , which help fight pests and weeds. Under current EU rules, which date back to 2011, primary pesticide components, or active substances, are only granted approval for limited periods of maximum 15 years. The European Commission's proposed revamp of the system would make indefinite greenlighting — including of the controversial glyphosate , which has been linked to cancer and kills almost all plant life — the default.