On 22 March, a public hearing organised by the European Parliament’s Environment Committee and the Petitions Committee looked at the impact of endocrine disruptors on public health and the environment. Endocrine disruptors, usually found in pesticides, metals, additives and contaminants in food, are chemicals that can interfere with our endocrine and hormonal systems and which can cause cancerous tumours, birth defects and other disorders (see the World Health Organisation’s info page). A recent high number of petitions on the subject led to the Parliament’s decision to hold the hearing and discuss the EU’s regulatory actions, as well as what scientists are currently saying on the subject. In October 2017, the Parliament had blocked plans proposed by the European Commission to exempt some pesticides from being identified as endocrine disruptors.