Technical workshop on risk assessment for plant protection products
Summary
Led by EFSA and the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE), the workshop was organised in two phases. The first morning was dedicated to an opening plenary session featuring presentations, which provided the background for the ensuing breakout sessions. For these, participants were divided into two groups, based on their expertise, to discuss the following topics: 1) transparency and identification, data, and hazard assessment; and 2) exposure and risk assessment (for more details, see agenda in the Documents section further below). The outcomes of the breakout discussions were reported back during a closing plenary session.
As a possible perspective, participants highlighted cooperations among stakeholders, and stronger collaboration between the different actors of the evaluation process. A proposal for follow-up actions to address the issues raised was drafted with the aim of mapping an action plan.
Who attended?
The workshop was attended by around 80 participants from 25 Member States (AT, BE, BG, CZ, DE, DK, EE, EL, ES, FI, FR, HR, HU, IE, IT, LT, LV, NL, NO, PL, PT, RO, SE, SI and SK) as well as from DG SANTE, ECHA and EFSA.
Objectives of the event
The objectives of the workshop were:
- to share experiences and current practices for performing the assessment of pesticide formulations
- to discuss specific technical and scientific issues with the purpose of harmonising the assessment at Member State and EU level.
Presentations
- 1 EFSA introduction
- 2 Assessment of PPPs, including co formulants
- 3 Assessment of plant protection products and co-formulants – Germany’s experience
- 4 Danish EPA experience in assessing PPPs
- 5 Information requirements for co-formulants under REACH
- 6 CLP: methodology for classification of mixtures
- 7 Assessment of co-formulants in biocidal product authorisation
- 8 Issues at stake: Introduction to the breakout sessions
- 9.1 Topic 1: Transparency and identification, data and hazard assessment
- 9.2 Topic 2 : Exposure and risk assessment
Background
Plant protection products (PPPs) are pesticides mainly used to keep crops healthy and prevent them from being destroyed by disease and infestation. They contain at least one active substance, which can be a chemical or micro-organism, enabling the product to perform its action.
According to EU legislation, PPPs cannot be placed on the market or used without prior authorisation. A dual system is in place, under which EFSA evaluates active substances used in plant protection products and Member States evaluate and authorise the products at national level.