Chlorpyrifos Ban Takes Effect Across EU as Studies Link Pesticide Exposure to Parkinson’s Disease

Similar ban was overturned in the U.S. by a federal appeals court in 2023, and no follow-up attempt has been made since.

Amid growing concerns that chlorpyrifos exposure may increase the risk of Parkinson’s disease, European Union member states can no longer manufacture, use, import or export the pesticide.

Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate insecticide that has been on the global market since the 1960s under a variety of brand names, such as Vulcan, Lorsban and Dursban. Over the decades, it has been used in agricultural, residential, commercial and military settings, with those mixing, loading and spraying it suffering regular exposure.

The European Commission announced on September 10 that it has decided to officially prohibit chlorpyrifos use in the EU, declaring the insecticide a persistent organic pollutant (POP) under international law. The decision comes amid increasing pressure to ban chlorpyrifos in the U.S. due to concerns over potential neurological damage.

Chlorpyrifos Parkinson’s Disease Risks

Researchers worldwide have been warning over the last several years that long-term chlorpyrifos exposure may increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, even at levels that were previously deemed safe.

In 2025, a study published in Molecular Neurodegeneration warned that long-term and long duration chlorpyrifos exposure increased the risk of the neurological disorder at 2.5 times the rate as when compared to those not exposed to the chemical. Conducting animal studies, the researchers say they found a mechanism of action in chlorpyrifos that progressively destroys dopamine-producing neurons and other effects, working in a way that is virtually identical to Parkinson’s disease.

The EU’s ban comes as the fight to remove the insecticide from the U.S. market continues. Chlorpyrifos lawyers are currently investigating potential chlorpyrifos Parkinson’s disease lawsuits for Gulf War veterans, agricultural workers, landscapers, pest control technicians and others who experienced regular or extensive exposure to products such as Dursban, Lorsban, Raid, Ortho and other products before being diagnosed with the neurological disease.

Chlorpyrifos Bans

In 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a ban on the use of chlorpyrifos on American food or crops. At that time, the pesticide was already identified as toxic, damaging to the nervous system, and was linked to brain damage, developmental delays, low birth weight, reduced intelligence and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

However, on November 2, 2023, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the chlorpyrifos ban, declaring that the EPA had acted too rashly in banning the chemical before considering whether there was any other way to modify its use. In November 2024, the Biden Administration’s EPA indicated it intended to try another ban in the near future, but those efforts have stalled under the current White House.

Some U.S. states already have chlorpyrifos bans in place, including Maryland, California, New York, Hawaii and Oregon.

European Union Chlorpyrifos Regulations

In the same year that a U.S. federal court was overturning a chlorpyrifos ban, international regulators with the Stockholm Convention’s Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee determined chlorpyrifos carried significant risks for human health and the environment. The committee placed it on a list of chemicals to be eliminated from use and manufacturing in the future.

Agreeing with the classification, the European Commission adopted new regulations on June 30, 2026, adding chlorpyrifos to its own POP list, which calls for it to be removed from the market. While the manufacturing, use, import and export restrictions go into effect at the end of September, the EU has generally already stopped using it.

However, a number of chemical companies in the EU still manufacture chlorpyrifos for export to countries where it is not banned, and that production must stop as well, according to the new regulations. The commission also included language calling for limits for chlorpyrifos occurring as an unintentional trace chemical in other substances. Those limits have not yet been announced.

In the U.S., Corteva was the leading manufacturer, but it ceased making the insecticide in 2020. Most chlorpyrifos is currently manufactured in relatively small amounts, primarily in China and India.

Chlorpyrifos Parkinson’s Disease Lawsuits

Chlorpyrifos injury lawsuits are being reviewed nationwide for individuals diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease who experienced repeated or direct exposure to the pesticide. Potential claims may involve individuals who:

• Mixed, loaded or applied a known chlorpyrifos insecticide on at least five occasions
• Lived in or were present inside a home where chlorpyrifos was sprayed for termites or general pest control
• Experienced repeated pesticide drift while living or working on or near a farm
• Encountered chlorpyrifos while working at construction sites where soil, foundations or building perimeters were treated
• Experienced repeated exposure while working on golf courses, landscaping crews or other treated grounds
• Served in the military during the First Gulf War between 1990 and 1992, when chlorpyrifos was used for insect control around camps and facilities

Consultation is free and fees are handled on a contingency fee basis for individuals who choose to move forward with a chlorpyrifos lawsuit.

A chlorpyrifos Parkinson’s disease attorney can help review the products involved, the frequency and duration of exposure, the location of the exposures and the individual’s medical history to determine whether they may be entitled to pursue compensation through a chlorpyrifos lawsuit settlement.

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