While global negotiations and agreements on climate and the environment can seem far removed from our daily lives in Canada, they can come to have a significant impact on Canadian policy-making. This is why, when the world descended on Montreal in December 2022 for COP15 (the United Nations Biodiversity Conference) to negotiate a set of goals to guide global action through 2030, we were paying close attention.

With more than 190 countries involved in the negotiations and a wide range of stakeholders from industries including mining, oil, fashion and agriculture on site for the weeks-long talks, you can imagine that consensus was not an easy thing to come by.

While not the sole focus of the event, agriculture was a significant part of the discussions with several of the 23 targets being negotiated touching agriculture. And while there were representatives from both the domestic and international agriculture communities onsite, there were also a number of groups present to protest modern agricultural technologies.

These groups made some splashy headlines but at the end of the day, science-based, decision-making largely prevailed. This certainly didn’t happen by accident and was the result of a great deal of sustained effort from the agriculture industry to bring forward and advocate for reasonable, science-based facts that give individual countries the flexibility to work towards joint goals with a domestic context in mind.

The draft language that was used as a starting point for negotiation on several targets was very problematic for the agriculture sector and could have spelled disaster if adopted. In many cases there was language that favoured ideology over science and it was clear that Europe’s approach to agricultural policy was at the forefront.

Fortunately, the final result of the conference and the agreed-upon targets were relatively balanced. This is good news for countries like Canada that are highly dependent on agriculture. And ultimately, it’s good for biodiversity as we can collectively focus on taking science-based measures to protect biodiversity while at the same time continuing to sustainably grow enough food to feed the world and support global food security.

Of the 23 targets being negotiated, Target 7, which is focused on pollution reduction, was among the most concerning for the agriculture sector. The draft text included language around the reduction in pesticide use by up to two-thirds. After extensive engagement from governments around the world, including the Canadian government, and industry stakeholders, the final language in Target 7 focuses on reducing the risk of pesticide pollution rather than the use. It refers to the role of integrated pest management, science as a basis, and the importance of taking into account food security and livelihoods.

Arbitrary pesticide-use reduction targets, like we’ve seen in Europe, would have been devastating for Canada. Canada is a world leader in pesticide regulation with a risk-based system that provides the utmost protection for human health and the environment while at the same time providing growers with timely access to innovative technologies that allow them to be more productive and more sustainable. Under the Canadian system, only pesticides that have gone through a rigorous review and do not pose an unacceptable risk, make it to market.

What we can and should collectively focus on is pesticide risk reduction. This is supported by science-based regulatory systems like we have in Canada as well as extensive training programs and best management practices to ensure the proper use and stewardship of pesticides. A pesticide being applied to a field to control a pest and protect a crop would not be considered pollution. Instead, the focus is on making sure that there isn’t any unintended off-site movement and that pesticides don’t end up in places they shouldn’t, such as waterways.

Let’s look at water as one area where the industry is working to reduce pollution risks. The recently developed Protected Agricultural Stewardship Standards help to identify and mitigate the risks associated with pesticide application in agricultural systems grown under structures such as greenhouses to further the protection of both human and environmental health and safety.

Canada is a world-leader in the adoption of best management practices for the stewardship of crop protection products with a focus on continuous improvement. And there’s an opportunity for Canada to help with knowledge transfer to other parts of the world so that we can collectively work towards some of these global targets.

Improved crop genetics also stand to play a critical role in reducing the risk of pesticide use. As more crop varieties come to market with resistance to various pests, it will give growers even more options to control pests. Gene editing stands to lead to the development of a wide variety of improved crops, including in the horticulture sector, in the years and decades ahead. 

COP15 has concluded with agreement on high-level global targets. Next comes the negotiations on what frameworks will be used to measure success against these targets. And as always, the devil is in the details, which is why CropLife Canada will continue to monitor and engage in these discussions.