Letter to Canada’s Health Minister Mark Holland: Industry interference in pesticide assessment

Published by: David Suzuki Foundation and partners
Authored by: Lisa Gue
Partners: Environmental Defence, Canadian Wildlife Federation, Nature Canada, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, Canadian Environmental Law Association, Prevent Cancer Now

Biodiversity conservation, Ontario

Recent reports suggest Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency allegedly “colluded” with Bayer Crop Science to maintain registration of the controversial neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid. This letter requests that Health Minister Mark Holland establish an independent panel to review the recent decision and prevent inappropriate industry influence in pesticide regulation. Imidacloprid is a neonicotinoid insecticide, a class of chemicals linked to global pollinator decline and loss of insect biodiversity. The insecticide has been banned in the European Union since 2018.