The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA)

Scope of Pesticide Regulation

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates pesticides, which includes insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, disinfectants, plant growth regulators and other substances intended to control pests. Pesticides have many uses: in agriculture, greenhouses, and on lawns; in swimming pools, industrial buildings and households; and in hospitals and food service establishments.

Overall, there are about 20,000 registered pesticide product formulations, containing approximately 675 active ingredients and 1,835 inert ingredients.

Food Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA)

The pesticide registration program acquired significant new dimensions on August 3, 1996, when the Food Quality Protection Act was enacted. FQPA, which amends both FIFRA and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), establishes a new safety standard for pesticide residues in food and emphasizes protecting the health of infants and children.

Under FQPA, all pesticide food uses must be "safe"; that is, EPA must be able to conclude with "reasonable certainty that no harm will result from aggregate exposure" to each pesticide from dietary and other sources. In determining allowable levels of pesticide residues in food, the Agency must conduct a comprehensive assessment of each pesticide's risks, considering:

• Aggregate exposure of the public to residues from all sources including food, drinking water, and residential uses;
• Cumulative effects of pesticides and other substances with common mechanisms of toxicity;
• Special sensitivity of infants and children to pesticide; and
• Estrogen or other endocrine effects.

Within ten years of enactment of the new law (by the end of 2006), EPA must reassess all existing "tolerances" (maximum limits for pesticide residues in foods) and exemptions from the requirement of a tolerance, for both the active and inert ingredients in pesticide products. The Agency must consider the pesticides posing the greatest potential risks first, to ensure that they meet FQPA's new safety standard.

For more information on The Food Quality Protection act, go to http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/lqpa.html.

The "Minimum-Risk" Pesticide Category

Minimum risk pesticides are certain products exempted from EPA registration containing only active ingredients outlined in FIFRA 40 CFR 152.25(g) (“the 25b list”) and inert ingredients currently identified on Federal Register Notice 59 FR 49400 (“the 4A list”). The EPA has determined the ingredients on these lists do not pose any risk to humans or the environment. The lists can be seen below and the (inerts here), respectively. Products that qualify as exempt do not have an EPA registration number on their labels. Currently, twenty states honor the federal exemption. For individual state registration requirements pertaining to federally exempt pesticides, click here.

To satisfy the conditions required for federal minimum risk status, all five of the following conditions must be met:

• Condition 1: The product must contain only active ingredients that are listed in the table below. The active ingredient of a product is the ingredient that kills, destroys, mitigates, or repels pests named on the product label.
  
  
• Condition 2: The product must contain only those inert ingredients that have been classified by EPA as List 4A “Inert Ingredients of Minimal Concern.”  An explanation of the Inert Ingredients of Minimal Concern and links to List 4A are available on EPA's Permitted Inerts Web page.
  
  
• Condition 3: All of the ingredients (both active and inert) must be listed on the label. The active ingredient(s) must be listed by name and percentage by weight. Each inert ingredient must be listed by name.
  
  
• Condition 4: The label cannot include any false or misleading statements, and claims that minimum risk pesticides protect human or public health are prohibited. For example, since these products are exempt from federal registration, label language implying federal registration, review or endorsement, such as “It is a violation of federal law to use this product in a manner inconsistent with the label,” or the use of an EPA registration or establishment number is not allowed.
  
  
• Condition 5: In general, public health claims are prohibited. Minimum risk pesticide labels may not bear claims to control rodent, insect or microbial pests in a way that links the pests with any specific disease. EPA recommends that anyone considering manufacturing, distributing, or selling minimum risk antimicrobial pesticide products first contact the Pesticide Program’s Antimicrobial Division ombudsman, who can assist in ensuring that proposed antimicrobial minimum risk products meet the strict requirements for exemption from registration.

  Additionally, EPA requires the establishment of maximum residue limits, which EPA calls tolerances, or exemptions from the requirement of a tolerance for all pesticides intended for use in a manner that may result in residues in food or feed.

Active Ingredients Exempted Under 25(b) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, & Rodenticide Act

* indicates exempt active ingredients that are also exempt from pesticide residue tolerance requirements

An alphabetical list of all our products and equipment makes finding the right pest control  product and application equipment quick and easy.