Brazil’s Mapa cancels registration of paraquat-based technical products

The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (Mapa) and the Brazilian National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) published a joint normative instruction that defines the procedures for monitoring and inspecting the use and collection of remaining stocks of products based on the active ingredient, paraquat, held by Brazilian farmers for the 2020/2021 agricultural harvest.

The registration of all technical paraquate-based products will be canceled as of the date of publication of the instruction. The registration of formulated products will be canceled as of 31st July, 2021. Technical products are used by the industry for the formulation of pesticides, while formulated products are those that are already ready to use. 

The importation, production and commercialization of technical products and formulated ones based on the active ingredient, paraquate, have been banned since 22nd September, 2020. The use of related products is also prohibited, with the exception of remaining stocks, according to the terms determined by Anvisa's Collegiate Board Resolution 428/2020. The monitoring of the use of such products will be managed by the State and District Agriculture Secretaries or an equivalent body.

The instruction also explains the conditions for using relevant products for risk management and considers occupational exposure, such as the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), the use of closed cabin tractors that enable the application of products without exposing workers, and the use of closed washing systems for equipment and packaging.

Farmers' cooperatives may distribute formulated products to their members up to 15 days before the end of the maximum period appropriate to the respective culture and region. Companies that register products based on paraquate must collect stocks in packages in volumes equal to or greater than five liters that are in the possession of farmers within 30 days after the end of the period, which will enable their use on respective crops and regions.

The original Portuguese version of this article is from GRUPO CULTIVAR.