Between Environmental Protection and Economic Competitiveness: The Evolution of EU Pesticide Policy under the Von der Leyen Commissions (2019–2026)

Details

Supervisors

Cingotti, Natacha

Faculty

Institut d'études européennes Saint-Louis

Degree label

Advanced Master in EU Environmental Governance (POLLEN)

Abstract

enThis paper examines how the European Union’s narrative on pesticide regulation evolved during the Von der Leyen Commissions (2019–2026) and what this reveals about shifting priorities between environmental protection and economic competitiveness in EU governance. Drawing on a discourse-analytical framework combining framing analysis and Discourse-Historical Analysis, it analyses 94 primary documents across three phases. Phase 1 (2019–2022) was characterised by ecological modernisation, with pesticide reduction framed as reconciling environmental and economic objectives. Phase 2 (2022–2024) saw a series of crises, including COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, rising energy prices, and farmer protests, weaken regulatory ambition and bring food security considerations more prominently into this balance, leading to the withdrawal of the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation. Phase 3 (2024–2026) reflects a further shift toward competitiveness-oriented framing, with simplification agendas and trade considerations gaining prominence relative to earlier reduction targets. The findings suggest that while the objective of an agricultural transition has not disappeared, the 50% pesticide reduction target has lost centrality. Overall, the analysis suggests a shift in how environmental and economic priorities are balanced in EU pesticide policy making.