Evaluation of the emergency authorisations granted by Member State Lithuania for plant protection products containing thiamethoxam

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) was requested by the European Commission to provide technical assistance in accordance with Article 53(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 to examine the emergency authorisations granted in 2020 by the competent national authority in Lithuania for plant protection products containing the neonicotinoid active substances (a.s.) clothianidin, imidacloprid or thiamethoxam for uses on sugar beet which were restricted when all outdoor uses were prohibited in May 2018. EFSA was asked to assess whether the granting of this emergency authorisation and its wide scope was necessary because of danger which cannot be contained by any other reasonable means. In this context, EFSA collected and evaluated the information in relation to the emergency authorisation for thiamethoxam in Lithuania in line with the EFSA insecticide protocol developed in the framework of a mandate concerning the application of Article 4(7) of Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009. The current technical report summarises the outcome of the evaluation of five crop/pest combinations considered in Lithuania in 2020. The evaluation demonstrated that for every crop/pest combination no sufficient alternative active substance to thiamethoxam is currently authorised in Lithuania, in order to provide an alternative mode of action (MoA). The evaluation included an assessment of non‐insecticide alternatives for the presented uses. No method is listed as available to control Melolontha melolontha in sugar beet in Lithuania. For the remaining combinations, at least two non‐chemical methods are available, including crop rotation which is applied in a large scale, but they are moderately effective, and their feasibility presents some restrictions.

This publication is linked to the following EFSA Supporting Publications articles: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6958/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6959/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6960/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6961/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6962/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6964/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6965/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6966/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6967/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6968/full, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.2903/sp.efsa.2021.EN-6969/full