The European Commission recently announced an important regulatory decision to completely ban the use of herbicide metribuzin within the European Union. The herbicide was originally scheduled to expire on February 15, 2025, but based on the latest risk assessment results, the ban will officially take effect before that date.
The ban decision is mainly based on the professional judgment made by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on the evaluation materials submitted by Estonia and Germany. The EFSA assessment report points out two key issues: firstly, metribuzin meets the criteria for determining endocrine disruptors in the human body, and there is an undeniable risk of human exposure in practical application scenarios; Secondly, the compound poses a potential high risk to pollinating insects, especially bees, and this risk cannot be effectively controlled through existing measures.
Although EFSA has confirmed the existence of various non chemical control alternatives in the market, these alternative methods still have certain limitations in terms of effectiveness and economy. In further evaluations by the EU Permanent Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed, safety hazards related to metribuzin have not been effectively addressed. To ensure a smooth transition, the EU has established a clear implementation timetable: member states must revoke the authorization of metribuzin containing plant protection products within 6 months after the ban takes effect, and each member state may decide to grant a "grace period" not exceeding 12 months after the ban takes effect. It is worth noting that this ban does not affect the right to resubmit approval applications for metribuzin in the future.
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