Chlorpyrifos Updates for the USA and Canada

Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate insecticide, acaricide and miticide used primarily to control foliage and soil-borne insect pests. In the past few months both Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) and US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have taken action to cancel the use of chlorpyrifos. ISURA includes chlorpyrifos pesticides as part of the more than 700 pesticides and other contaminants for which it routinely tests natural health product raw ingredients and materials.

Read on for highlights from the EPA and PMRA websites and links to more information:

 

United States Environmental Protection Agency

Effective August 18, 2021

Excerpt from webpage: https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/chlorpyrifos

“In August 2021, EPA released a final rule revoking all “tolerances” for chlorpyrifos, which establish an amount of a pesticide that is allowed on food. Read a prepublication version of the final rule: Chlorpyrifos; Tolerance Revocations (pdf) . In addition, the agency will issue a Notice of Intent to Cancel under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act to cancel registered food uses of chlorpyrifos associated with the revoked tolerances.”

 

Health Canada: Pest Management Regulatory Agency

Excerpt from webpage: https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/consumer-product-safety/reports-publications/pesticides-pest-management/decisions-updates/reevaluation-note/2021/n-methyl-carbamate/chlorpyrifos.html

Re-evaluation Note REV2021-02, Update on the Re-evaluation of Chlorpyrifos

13 May 2021
ISSN: 1925-0649 (PDF version)
Catalogue number: H113-5/2021-2E-PDF (PDF version)

“Under the re-evaluation program, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has reviewed chlorpyrifos and its associated uses and implemented several risk reduction measures over the years. In 2000, Health Canada removed all residential uses from chlorpyrifos labels…

[According to the May 13, 2021 Re-evaluation Note REV2021-02,] Health Canada has cancelled all chlorpyrifos uses/products, including those that remained registered following the environmental risk assessment, in accordance with paragraph 20(1)(a) of the Pest Control Products Act. The existing stocks of all chlorpyrifos products in Canada are being phased out with the following timelines:

• Last date of sale by registrant: 10 December 2021
• Last date of sale by retailers: 10 December 2022
• Last date of use for all chlorpyrifos uses/products including canola (for alfalfa looper) and garlic (for darksided and redbacked cutworm): 10 December 2023

The intended work to update the human health assessment is no longer needed as all pest control products containing chlorpyrifos are being cancelled due to failure to satisfy requested data requirements. On this basis, the re-evaluation for chlorpyrifos is now considered complete.”

Download PDF of this document here.