EU Releases Official Prohibition Notice of Chlorothalonil

On April 29, 2019, the European Union released the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/677, which no longer approved the re review application of chlorothalonil (CAS No. 1897-45-6). The announcement took effect on May 20.

According to the provisions of the announcement, the relevant pharmaceutical products shall be withdrawn from the market within 6 months from the effective date of the announcement. Each Member State may grant a grace period of six months, and shall revoke the authorization of all products containing chlorothalonil by May 2020 at the latest.

Previously, the EU Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feeds (SCoPAFF) voted to ban chlorothalonil, saying that this product also has a large environmental risk, a high risk to fish and amphibians, and the degradation products of this component may also have a high pollution to groundwater. The NFU Scotland warned that the move would deprive Scottish farmers of an important crop protection product. Ian Sands, the chairman of the Alliance, said that the suspension of chlorothalonil may have a huge impact on barley and wheat production and even the beverage industry, and the product can still be used in other countries outside the EU. For growers, it is not too much to say that the suspension of chlorothalonil is a disaster.

Chlorothalonil has a broad bactericidal spectrum, and is effective for ascomycetes, basidiomycetes, semi fungi and oomycetes. In addition, its unique mechanism of action, excellent mixing performance and no resistance characteristics can be used as an effective means of fungicide resistance management. The top five markets of chlorothalonil are the United States, France, China, Brazil and Japan, of which the United States is the largest market. The main crops are fruits, vegetables, cereals, non crops, potatoes, pears, etc. It is understood that the demand for chlorothalonil in Europe is about 5800 tons, accounting for 20% of the global demand. In 2018, the export volume of chlorothalonil in China was 35000 tons, and the European region accounted for 15% of the total export volume.