Media outlets, citing documents they have reviewed, report that the European Union is moving to relax pesticide regulations following successful lobbying by chemical companies and agricultural groups.

The European Commission's proposal aligns with industry demands and seeks to loosen restrictions on banned substances.

These documents were obtained by the non-governmental organization Corporate Europe Observatory through freedom of information requests and provided to the media.

Under current regulations, approved pesticide active substances must be reassessed every 15 years.

The European Commission proposes eliminating this re-evaluation mechanism to reduce administrative costs and compliance burdens for agri-food producers.

The report states that the European Commission said relevant meeting information has been published in its transparency register.

Its spokesperson said that if new safety concerns arise, targeted reviews of approved substances can still be conducted.