Report: On July 30, 2021, the European Commission notified the WTO that it recommended that the insecticide indoxacarb be no longer approved for EU plant protection product registration (based on EU Plant Protection Product Regulation 1107/2009).
Indoxacarb is an oxadiazine insecticide. It was first commercialized by DuPont in 1992. Its mechanism of action is to block sodium channels in insect nerve cells (IRAC: 22A). Further research has been conducted. It shows that only the S isomer in the structure of indoxacarb is active on the target organism.
As of August 2021, indoxacarb has 11 technical registrations and 270 registrations of preparations in China. The preparations are mainly used to control lepidopteran pests, such as cotton bollworm, diamondback moth, and beet armyworm.
Why the EU no longer approves indoxacarb
Indoxacarb was approved in 2006 under the old EU plant protection product regulations (Directive 91/414/EEC), and this re-assessment was carried out under the new regulations (Regulation No 1107/2009). In the process of member evaluation and peer review, many key issues have not been resolved.
According to the conclusion of the assessment report of the European Food Safety Agency EFSA, the main reasons are as follows:
(1) The long-term risk to wild mammals is unacceptable, especially for small herbivorous mammals.
(2) Representative use-applied to lettuce, it was found to pose a high risk to consumers and workers.
(3) Representative use-Seed production applied to corn, sweet corn and lettuce was found to pose a high risk to bees.
At the same time, EFSA also pointed out the part of the risk assessment that could not be completed due to insufficient data, and specifically mentioned the following data gaps.
As there is no representative use of a product that can meet the EU Plant Protection Product Regulation 1107/2009, the EU finally decided not to approve the active substance.
The EU has not yet issued a formal resolution to ban indoxacarb. According to the EU’s notification to the WTO, the EU hopes to issue a ban resolution as soon as possible and will not wait until the deadline (December 31, 2021) ends.
According to the EU Plant Protection Products Regulation 1107/2009, after the decision to ban active substances is issued, the corresponding plant protection products have a sales and distribution buffer period of no more than 6 months, and a stock consumption period of no more than 1 year. The specific length of the buffer period will also be given in the EU’s official prohibition notice.
In addition to its application in plant protection products, indoxacarb is also used in biocidal products. Indoxacarb is currently undergoing renewal review under the EU biocide regulation BPR. The renewal review has been postponed many times. The latest deadline is the end of June 2024.
Post time: Aug-20-2021