Health and Safety
Executive / Commission
Press Releases
As a precautionary measure, Ministers have suspended the sale of a range of agricultural, professional and domestic insecticide products containing the chemical dichlorvos (see Annex 1 for a full list of affected products).
Dichlorvos is used in some domestic pesticide products and certain parts of the horticultural industry. This decision will minimise the exposure of householders and those who work with pesticides from a remote but potentially significant risk to their health.
This decision has been taken by Ministers following the advice of an independent expert scientific committee, the Advisory Committee on Pesticides (ACP). In reaching its decision, the ACP consulted members of the Committee on Mutagenicity (COM) and the Committee on Carcinogenicity, both of which report to the Government's Chief Medical Officer and the Chairman of the Food Standards Agency.
The ACP was concerned that it could not satisfactorily rule out the possibility that dichlorvos is a genotoxic carcinogen (i.e. causes cancer by damaging DNA).
ACP Chair, Professor David Coggon said:
"We have advised Ministers that there could be a small risk of adverse health effects following prolonged exposure to dichlorvos. They have therefore decided as a precautionary measure to suspend the sale of specified products containing dichlorvos with immediate effect."
This means that it will be illegal to advertise, sell or supply a range of insecticides containing dichlorvos. Retailers should remove all such products from their shelves immediately and may wish to contact their suppliers or local waste authority for details of how to dispose of them. It is not illegal to continue to store or use the products, as long as this is done safely (for example, by following the instructions given on the product label).
Members of the public can continue to use up dichlorvos products that they have already bought, and may dispose of used or unused products in household rubbish bins.
Dr Alan Whitehead, Minister for Health and Safety, said:
"This is a responsible precautionary step, and one which has been taken in the light of careful consideration of independent expert scientific advice."
The Lord Whitty, Minister for Food and Farming :
"I fully support this regulatory action, which demonstrates the Government's commitment to vigorous safety-based pesticide controls in order to protect users of pesticides against potential risks to their health. The advice from the Advisory Committee on Pesticides is precautionary and indicates that any risk to users is remote.
"However, no suspended products containing dichlorvos will be allowed into the supply chain until and unless Ministers have the ACP's advice that this is acceptably safe."
The suspension will last until such time as acceptable data regarding the mutagenic and carcinogenic potential of dichlorvos can be presented to the ACP.
The Health and Safety Executive acts on behalf of Ministers in issuing approvals for household and other non-agricultural insecticides, and the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' (DEFRA's) Pesticides Safety Directorate issues approvals on behalf of Ministers for agricultural insecticides.
* Advisory Committee on Pesticides (ACP), withdrawal of agricultural dichlorvos products -Oliver Cattermole, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) on 020 7238 6096
* Withdrawal of non-agricultural dichlorvos products - Alasdair Frew, HSE on 020 7717 6179
- Rachel Clinton, Department of Health (DoH) on 020 7210 5623.
For information on non-agricultural products containing dichlorvos, call HSE's Biocides help line on 0151 951 5825.
For information on agricultural dichlorvos-based products, call DEFRA helpline is 0845 050 4141
1. Pesticides are controlled under the Food and Environmental Protection Act 1985 and the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986. Without specific approval, no pesticide may be advertised, sold, supplied, stored or used. Ministers' decision means that the advertisement, sale and supply of both agricultural and domestic insecticides containing dichlorvos are suspended. The suspension will last until such time as acceptable data regarding the mutagenic and carcinogenic potential of dichlovos can be presented to the ACP. Consumers and professional may, however, use up any product that they have already bought.
2. The Advisory Committee on Pesticides, set up under the 1985 Act, is an independent committee of experts that advises health and agriculture Ministers on the safety of pesticides. Its advice is provided to the Department of Health, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions, and Ministers in the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales. Its meetings are attended by officials from these departments, and from the Health and Safety Executive and DEFRA's Pesticides Safety Directorate who jointly provide the Secretariat for the Committee, and act as the agents of the above Ministers in the issuing of approvals, suspensions and revocations for pesticides.
3. The Committee on Mutagenicity (full title, the Committee on Mutagenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment) and The Committee on Carcinogenicity (full title, the Committee on Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products, and the Environment) are independent committees of experts reporting to the Chief Medical Officer (Sir Liam Donaldson) and the Chairman of the Board of the Food Standards Agency (Sir John Krebs). COM and COC provides advice to Government departments and agencies.
4. Dichlorvos is an organophosphate. The Health and Safety Executive and DEFRA are conducting a review of all anticholinesterase (organophosphorus and carbamate) compounds approved under the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986. These reviews are being conducted to reassess the risk that agricultural and non-agricultural pesticide products present to consumers, workers and the environment. This review programme does not cover use of these compounds for other purposes, for example use in human and veterinary medicines (including use as sheep dips, although dichlorvos is not used in sheep dips) as these are authorised and subject to scrutiny under separate legislation.
5. Further information: The minutes of the ACP meetings can be found on the website of the Pesticides Safety Directorate of DEFRA: http://www.pesticides.gov.uk/acp_home.asp
The statement and minutes of COM's consideration of dichlorvos are published on the Department of Health website: http://www.dh.gov.uk
Further information on the approval system for non-agricultural pesticides can be found on the HSE website: http://www.hse.gov.uk/hthdir/noframes/bpau.htm
Call HSE's InfoLine, tel: 0845 345 0055
or write to: HSE Information Services, Caerphilly Park, Caerphilly
CF83 3GG.
Table 1. Non-agricultural pesticides containing dichlorvos affected by this decision
HSE No. Product Name Product Type Marketing Company 4773 Bop Aerosol McBride International 6152 Farco Rapid Kill Aerosol
F A Richard & Co Ltd 3696 Shelltox Extra Fly killer Aerosol Temana International Ltd 3162 Shelltox Fly killer Aerosol Temana International Ltd 4907 Vapona Fly & Wasp Killer Spray Aerosol Ashe Ltd 6265 Anopav Fly Killer Slow release strip Not to be marketed 5795 Betterware Flying Insect Killer (Slow Release) Slow release cassette Betterware UK Ltd 6959 Betterware Slow Slow release cassette Betterware UK Ltd 5990 Betterware Small Space Insect Killer Slow release cassette Betterware UK Ltd 4922 Boots Slow Release Fly Killer Slow release cassette The Boots Company PLC 5272 Boots Small Space Moth Killer Slow release cassette The Boots Company PLC 6958 Bouchard Slow Release Fly Killer Slow release cassette IBA UK Ltd
7085 Combat Fly Killer Slow release cassette
Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd 7086 Combat Moth Killer Slow release cassette
Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd 4338 Cromessol Fly-Away Slow release cassette Comessol Company Ltd 4027 Culmstock Mothproofer Slow release cassette
Culmstock Ltd 3961 Culmstock Slow Release Fly Killer Slow release cassette Culmstock Ltd 5676 Fly Killer Slow release cassette Rentokil Intitial UK Ltd 4442 Flying Insect Killer Slow release cassette Culmstock Ltd 4618 Freshways Slow Release Insect Killer Slow release cassette Freshways of York 4692 Global Small Space Fly and Moth Strip Slow release cassette Globol Chemicals UK Ltd 4617 Industrial Hygiene Controllable Cassette Insect Killer Slow release cassette Industrial Hygiene Co. Ltd 5259 Jeyes Slow ReleaseFly Killer Controllable Cassette Slow release cassette Jeyes Group Ltd 5289 Jeyes Small Space Fly And Moth Strip Slow release cassette Jeyes Group Ltd 5261 Kleenoff Slow Release Fly Killer Controllable Cassette Slow release cassette Jeyes Group Ltd 5288 Kleenoff Small Space Fly And Moth Strip Slow release cassette Jeyes Group Ltd 5598 Kontrol Kitchen Size Fly Killer Slow release cassette Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd 4920 Lloyds Supersave Slow Release Fly And Wasp Killer Slow release cassette Lloyds 4921 Lloyds Supersave Small Space Fly And Moth Strip Slow release cassette
Lloyds 5677 Moth And Fly Killer Slow release cassette Rentokil Initial Ltd 6268 Murphys Long Lasting Fly And Wasp Killer Slow release cassette Levington Horticulture Ltd 4397 Secto Fly Killer Living Room Size Slow release cassette Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd 4398 Secto Mini-Space Insect Killers Slow release cassette Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd
4430 Secto Moth Killer Slow release cassette Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd 4399 Secto Slow Release Fly Killer Kitchen Size Slow release cassette Sinclair Animal & House Care Ltd 4339 Slow Release Fly Killer Controllable Cassette Slow release cassette Globol Chemicals UK Ltd 3962 Superdrug Slow Release Fly Killer Slow release cassette
Superdrug Stores PLC 4068 Superdrug Small Space Fly/Moth Strip Slow release cassette Superdrug Stores PLC 3673 Teepol Products Vapona Fly Killer Slow release cassette Temana International Ltd 6168 Terminator Slow Release Fly Killer Slow release cassette Sanoda Ltd 6167 Terminator Small Space Fly And Moth Killer Slow release cassette Sanoda Ltd 4717 Vapona Fly Killer Slow release cassette Ashe Ltd 4724 Vapona Moth Killer Slow release cassette Ashe Ltd 5685 Vapona Professional Cockroach Killer Slow release cassette Ashe Consumer Products Ltd 4723 Vapona Small Space Fly Killer Slow release cassette Ashe Consumer Products Ltd 4292 Funnel Trap Insecticidal Strip Slow release strip
Agrisense BCS Ltd 5517 DDVP (Toxicant) Strip Slow release strip
International Pheremone Systems Ltd 5081 Museum Flykiller Slow release strip Not to be marketed
If members of the public have a product with an HSE number to control insects in the home or other buildings which contains dichlorvos but is not in the list above, it may be old stocks of products that no longer hold approval. You can contact HSE to check this (0151 951 5825) or dispose of it in the bin.
Table 2. PSD approved products for agricultural use
FOR INFORMATION ONLY, ANY ENQUIRIES ON DEFRA PRODUCTS SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO THE PESTICIDES SAFETY DIRECTORATE ON 01904 455775
Product Supplier M08590 Nuvan 500EC Novartis Animal Health UK Ltd M08297 Luxan Dichlorvos 600 Luxan Ltd M08298 Luxan Dichlorvos Aerosol 15 Luxan Ltd
· Luxan Dichlorvos Aerosol 15 is used for the control of western flower thrips on protected cucumbers.
· Nuvan 500EC is used for structural treatment in animal and poultry houses (and is also used in stables for fly control).
Background
· Ciba Geigy Agriculture merged with Sandvos to create Novartis
· Novartis Crop Protection recently demerged to form Syngenta, but Nuvan 500EC remained with Novartis Animal Health