Thursday, August 20th 2026
Drones have been linked to military operations and airspace violations in Eastern Europe and the Middle East in recent years, but the European Union appears ready, according to Politico, to assign them a different mission: helping farmers fight pests.
The European Commission is considering lifting a long-standing ban preventing the use of drones to spray pesticides as part of an overhaul of EU rules on defense products. of plants.
This change is considered one of the less controversial points of the wider reform, as member states have called for more flexibility in the use of agricultural drones for years.
From a tool of war to a “smart” agricultural ally
The spread of agricultural drones has accelerated worldwide since the 2010s, transforming them from a technological innovation to a key tool of modern agriculture in less than ten years.
At large agricultural exhibitions, drones are now beginning to “steal roles” from tractors and traditional agricultural machinery.
The problem for European farmers is that, despite their potential, they cannot be widely used in practice due to strict regulations. The Commission is now trying to change this framework.
“Europe has the talent and technology to lead in digital agriculture. Now we need to make sure that farmers benefit from it,” Agriculture Commissioner Christoph Hansen wrote on the Bluesky platform, specifically referring to drones.
Why aerial spraying is still banned
The use of agricultural drones in the EU is not only regulated by aviation safety rules, but also by The 2009 European Directive on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides.
The directive bans aerial spraying, mainly due to concerns about the spread of chemicals, environmental pollution and human exposure to plant protection products. However, this framework was created before the widespread use of drones in agriculture.
Today, national governments can only allow spraying in special cases, where application by conventional means is difficult or dangerous.
Such cases are, for example, terraced vineyards in Portugal, apple orchards in South Tyrol or flooded areas where tractors cannot move and workers using backpack sprayers are more exposed to
Proponents of drones argue that the current process is complicated and that the potential of the technology far exceeds the limited cases where it is allowed to be used.
Drones can “scan” crops, detect pests and moisture problems early, and apply fertilizers and pesticides with much greater precision.
The logic is that by spraying only the areas that really need it, chemical use is reduced, costs are reduced. and the impact on health and the environment is reduced.
CropLife, the crop protection industry organisation, also argues that drones run mainly on batteries, making them a lower-emissions option compared to tractors.
Commission still admits ‘knowledge gaps’
Despite the advantages, the European Commission admits there are still significant questions about the safe use of drones.
In a document accompanying the proposal reform, the Commission says that “significant knowledge gaps remain,” such as how far pesticides can be carried by wind or which drones can apply the substances more precisely.
At the same time, however, it acknowledges that existing limitations make it difficult to collect more data.
The Commission notes that the industry sees drones as “the technology most limited by the current framework,” even though they can contribute to a more sustainable use of pesticides.
The commission plans to integrate drones into a broader strategy on digital agriculture, which is expected by the end of the year. The aim is for Europe to be at the forefront of the transition to so-called precision agriculture.
“Artificial intelligence, satellites, drones and precision agriculture can increase productivity, use resources more efficiently and reduce bureaucracy,” said Christoph Hansen.
States, calls for change for years
The first attempt by member states to change outdated drone rules “lost” in the most conflict major political debate on the European law to reduce pesticides, which was finally abandoned in 2024.
In December 2024, 15 countries, including the Czech Republic, asked the European Commission to draw up a new proposal on the use of drones.
The interest of farmers is constantly growing, especially as they are encouraged to reduce the risks of pesticide use. “Drones are tools that can help reduce the amount of products applied, limit the impact on non-target organisms and at the same time keep agricultural production competitive,” said Czech Agriculture Ministry spokesman Vojislav Bilí.
The commission has included the proposal to relax rules on agricultural drones in the broader package of changes on food and animal safety.
However, the package faces strong political opposition on other issues, such as unlimited approval of substances not considered to be among the most dangerous and a ban on the import of agricultural products containing traces of certain pesticides not used in the US.
Under the drone proposal, member states would be able to allow their wider use, provided they are deemed to pose no greater risks than traditional ground spraying.
Advice The EU already agreed in May to give governments more freedom to approve the use of drones.
Environmental groups have expressed reservations, calling for a slower approach until the scientific evidence is clear. At the same time, they warn of potential risks related to the protection of personal data and the possibility that the expensive technology could widen the gap between large farms and smaller producers.
While these concerns exist, they do not seem to have stopped member states from supporting the wider use of drones. However, the entire reform package must be approved in its entirety and the Irish EU presidency has yet to find a clear path to compromise on the most contentious points. /tesheshi.com/
Source: prizrenpost
