Shandong Province prohibits newbuild of glyphosate, chlorothalonil, avermectin, imidacloprid and acetochlor facilities

Shandong Provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued on January 24 a Notice on Further Strengthening of Pesticide Production Management, which requires strict regulation and restriction of newbuild of glyphosate, chlorothalonil, avermectin, imidacloprid and acetochlor facilities. 

The notice requires strict pesticide production management implementation, discretional capacity extension restriction, and repeated facility newbuild. For the new production capacity (new production entity and new production site) beyond the encouraged pesticide productions included in the National Industrial Restructuring Guidance, a pesticide production license will not be issued in principle or be issued with reduced/equivalent quota. For enterprises that have been granted pesticide production licenses, the extended production of powder and emulsifiable concentrate involving toxic and harmful adjuvants is strictly restricted. 

The notice prohibits the production of pesticides banned in China; phaseout of small packages (1 kg or below 1 kg) manual packaging/hand fill process and Raymond milling of powder. In principle, there should be no newbuild of production facilities for high-toxic, high residue and polluting pesticides. These include omethoate, isocarbophos, isofenphos-methyl, phorate, terbufos, methidathion, bromomethane, methomyl, aldicarb, carbofuran, diphacinone-sodium, diphacinone-ketone, warfarin, coumatetralyl, bromadiolone, brodifacoum, creotoxin, dimehypo, aluminium phosphide, organotin insecticide, dimethyldithiocarbamate fungicide, compound sodium nitrophenolate (potassium), chlorsulfuron, ethametsulfuron and metsulfuron-methyl. There should be no newbuild of production facilities of glyphosate, chlorpyrifos (except for aqueous phase process), triazophos, chlorothalonil, avermectin, imidacloprid, acetochlor (except for methene process) and trichloronitromethane. 

By the end of 2024, Shandong Province has to phase out the production of 10 highly toxic pesticides, including omethoate, isocarbophos, isofenphos-methyl, phorate, ethoprophos, methomyl, aldicarb, carbofuran, aluminum phosphide and trichloronitromethane.