The White Paper presented here is a consensus document produced by a group of 24 experts from non-governmental organisations, academia, and regulatory science, working in the field of pesticides, risk assessment, law, and human and environmental health. It identifies a range of shortfalls in the safety assessment of pesticides in Europe that result in the unrestricted use of potentially dangerous substances in agricultural fields and open spaces. The White Paper is intended to provide expert input into the ongoing evaluation of the EU legislation on pesticides, proposes 18 concrete solutions on how to improve the risk assessment and risk management of pesticides in Europe, in line with the requirements of EU law. It supports the implementation of a higher level of protection from pesticides in Europe, as the EU law demands. Ultimately, it aims to promote the development and implementation of sustainable, non-chemical pest management practices in our food production system.

The White Paper was developed by members of the coalition Citizens for Science in Pesticide Regulation, in an initiative of Pesticide Action Network Europe. The development process was initiated by the authors during a workshop held in Brussels in April 2018. Based on this work, a manifesto was produced which calls for "rigorous science, safe food and healthy environment" through reform of the pesticide risk assessment process. As of 18 January 2019 the manifesto had gathered more than 130 civil society and institutional supporters. More information about Citizens for Science in Pesticide Regulation and its activities can be found here: https://citizens4pesticidereform.eu/