China issues draft revision of pesticide regulation

China is considering revisions to its regulation of pesticide administration in a bid to improve the safety of agricultural products.

The Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council on Wednesday published the draft of the revised regulation on its website, www.chinalaw.gov.cn.

According to a statement on the website, the draft will also help protect the health of the farmers and animals.

The statement said the revision improves the current regulation, which went into effect in 1997, in areas of production register, quality control, marketing, and the use and administrative management of pesticides.

The draft revision intensifies the review of the safety and effectiveness of the pesticide products applying for register, the statement said.

The draft also asks pesticide manufacturers to set up record systems of the raw materials and products' quality to ensure that every process in the production conforms with the quality standards, the statement said.

Moreover, the draft stipulates that agricultural authorities should provide technical services to farmers about the proper use of pesticides and make efforts to reduce the dosage of pesticides used in agricultural products.

The draft also asks the authorities to conduct reviews to the registered pesticide products and ban or limit the use of the products in cases where risks exist to product safety, people's health or to the environment.

The draft is available on the website for public comment, which can be submitted anytime before August 31 via online post, e-mail or written letters.