Sustainable use of pesticides · Compliance with Directive 2009/128/EC
Your pesticide practices assessed against Directive 2009/128/EC, then converted into a costed action plan.
10 themes, a 5-level scale. And the action that moves each level to the next.
The framework’s 10 themes, already written from L1 to L5. One company, one business unit, or 300 at once.
Sustainable use of pesticides · Compliance with Directive 2009/128/EC
10 themes, 5-level scale.
Nordhavn Industries
53 / 100
They measure their maturity with Datamensio
An example
This could be your situation.
Take one company as an example: three sites, three spreadsheets, no shared answer.
Nobody can consolidate.
Nordhavn Industries, 2,400 people in Hamburg, Lyon and Porto. A client asks where the group stands. Each site answers in its own spreadsheet, with its own scales.
Three weeks, a single base.
One Directive 2009/128/EC of 21 October 2009 assessment launched across all three sites at once, from the managers’ interview notes. The framework was already written, its 10 themes and levels L1 to L5 too.
Two costs avoided before being committed.
A score of 53 out of 100, with the gap concentrated on three themes. The AI companion spotted that two actions duplicated those of another audit. The committee report took one sentence to request.
What it saved them
- 3sites measured on the same base, instead of three questionnaires to reconcile
- 2duplicate actions caught before the spend
- 1committee report, with no manual rework
These figures are an example. They could be yours.
The standard imposes processes. Datamensio says where you stand.
01
The framework is already written
Themes, questions and levels L1 to L5, all written. You do not start from an empty spreadsheet.
02
The score lands the same day
Online, by self-assessment link or in interview. Theme by theme, comparable over time.
03
The gap becomes a costed plan
Every step up carries its action. The AI prioritises on expected effect, not on the order of the standard.
04
Progress can be demonstrated
Campaign after campaign, against your target and against your own past. That is what your board asks for.
The maturity scale
One level, the next, and the action that links the two.
This mechanism (a level, a level above, and the action linking the two) is what turns a finding into a trajectory.
Are the untreated buffer zones designed to protect water bodies defined and respected during application?
- N1
No untreated buffer zone is defined. Distances to water bodies are left to the applicator’s judgement.
- N2
Distances appear in a written instruction, but the plots concerned are not mapped and application varies between operators.
- N3
Untreated buffer zones are mapped plot by plot, communicated to applicators and respected in general. Deviations remain occasional.
- N4
Compliance with the zones is verified through documented field checks, deviations are subject to corrective action and contractors are included in the process.
- N5
The zones are updated whenever marketing authorisations or land parcels change, with a documented record of revisions and associated anti-drift equipment.
Action to move from L2 to L3
Map the untreated buffer zones plot by plot using the land register and identified water bodies, attach the map to the treatment order given to each applicator, and check its use at the start-of-season technical meeting.
« With Datamensio, we meet our objectives far more efficiently. The ERDF inspection services and our supervising ministry particularly appreciated an approach that gives them reliable data. »
Director, CCI 94CCI Île-de-France
« We believe this is the most suitable solution to scale our transformation project and measure impact according to our needs. »
Maja SucekChief Operating Officer, Interreg Danube
Rarely on its own
Frameworks combine. Put several together to cover your business, or have the AI write yours.
Take your first measurement
What this framework covers
Directive 2009/128/EC establishes a Community framework for pesticide use compatible with sustainable development. It requires Member States to adopt national action plans with objectives and indicators, to train and certify professional users, distributors and advisers, to carry out periodic inspection of application equipment, to regulate aerial spraying, to apply specific measures to protect aquatic environments and drinking water, to reduce use in areas frequented by the public, and to apply the general principles of integrated pest management.
In practice, the requirement is spread across parties who do not always talk to each other. Are all applicators’ certificates valid, and who tracks their expiry dates? Have the sprayers used by contractors passed periodic inspection, and is the evidence available? Are untreated buffer zones along watercourses actually respected on the ground, or only written into an instruction? Is integrated pest management documented crop by crop, or does it remain a stated principle?
The context has moved on. The proposed regulation on the sustainable use of plant protection products, intended to replace the directive, was withdrawn by the Commission in February 2024: Directive 2009/128/EC therefore remains the applicable text, transposed into each national law. Buyers and private schemes, meanwhile, have not waited, and now build integrated pest management, treatment records and buffer zone management into their own scorecards. A frequent confusion also persists between this directive, which covers use, and Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, which sets maximum residue limits in food.
A compliance audit concludes with a gap or a pass, requirement by requirement. The maturity assessment asks a different question: what level of control does each practice sit at, and what specific action moves it up a level. This is what turns a finding into a transformation programme, and what makes it possible to compare two sites or two seasons.
In Datamensio, the framework is ready to use and adaptable. The AI adjusts the themes, questions and levels to your sector, orchards, arable crops, viticulture or non-agricultural areas, or builds a version from your own specifications and treatment records.
Reference standard: Directive 2009/128/EC of 21 October 2009
The themes assessed
Governance and internal action plan
Plant protection product use policy, alignment with the national action plan, reduction targets, indicators tracked, roles and responsibilities.
Training and certification of operators
Certificates for applicators, distributors and advisers, validity and renewal, monitoring of contractors, awareness for seasonal workers.
Inspection of application equipment
Inventory of sprayers, mandatory periodic inspection, inspection evidence, adjustment and maintenance, verification of third-party equipment.
Integrated pest management
Prevention and rotation, monitoring of pest populations, intervention thresholds, priority to non-chemical methods, choice of substances, resistance management.
Protection of aquatic environments and drinking water
Untreated buffer zones along water bodies, anti-drift equipment, filling and washing areas, management of effluents and tank residues.
Specific areas and sensitive populations
Use restrictions in areas frequented by the public, sensitive establishments, information for residents, re-entry intervals.
Aerial spraying and other specific application methods
General prohibition and derogation regime, authorisation conditions, prior notification, traceability of operations.
Storage, handling and waste management
Storage area and separation of products, empty packaging, unusable or expired products, personal protective equipment.
Traceability and records
Treatment register, application data, pre-harvest intervals, consistency with marketing authorisations and approved uses.
Monitoring, review and improvement
Internal checks, follow-up on non-conformities, residue analysis, lessons learned, comparison over time and between sites.
A short version of the framework is available for the online self-assessment.
Frequently asked questions
Is Directive 2009/128/EC certifiable?
No. It is an EU directive transposed into each Member State’s law, with binding requirements checked by inspection authorities. The Datamensio assessment measures the maturity of your practices and prepares you for these inspections or your customers’ audits, it does not issue any certificate.
What is the difference between this assessment and a compliance audit?
An audit rules requirement by requirement, compliant or not. The assessment places each practice on a five-level maturity scale and identifies the action that moves it forward. The two complement each other: the assessment prepares for the audit, the audit validates it.
Is this directive the same subject as maximum residue limits?
No. Directive 2009/128/EC covers product use, training, equipment and the protection of environments. Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 sets maximum residue levels in food. A cross-cutting roadmap can address both without duplicating actions.
How long does the assessment take?
The short version takes 20 to 30 minutes to complete. The full version, run collaboratively with several contributors, typically spans one to two weeks, most of the time going into gathering evidence from technical managers and sites.
Can the framework be adapted to our sector?
Yes. The themes, questions and levels can be modified, and the AI builds a version for viticulture, orchards, arable crops or non-agricultural areas from your specifications. You can also add your own themes.
Can several sites or farms be compared?
Yes. The same framework rolled out as an organisation-wide assessment gives a score per theme and per entity, with benchmarking across business units and comparison with previous seasons. The AI groups the gaps into a prioritised roadmap across the whole scope.
Do respondents need agronomic expertise?
The questions concern organisation and practices, not the choice of active substances. A quality or HSE manager can answer them. The collaborative mode allows technical questions to be assigned to the agronomic manager or crop supervisor.
Where is the data hosted?
In France, with OVH, backed up with Scaleway. No transfer outside the European Union. The AI models used can be selected, including from European solutions.