BfR Consumer Monitor 2016 Special

BfR Consumer Monitor 2016

Special Plant Protection Products

Plant protection products

Plant protection products protect plants or plant products from

harmful organisms and diseases. They are also used to regulate

plant growth. Plant protection products are categorised into dif-

ferent groups, depending on the effect they have:

Herbicides to kill weeds

Insecticides to control insects

Fungicides to prevent fungal diseases

Molluscicides to control snails

Acaricides to kill mites

Rodenticides to control harmful rodents

Growth regulators to control biological processes

Even if authorised plant protection products are used proper-

ly and for the intended purpose, residues can remain in the

harvested crops and the foods and feeds made from them. To

ensure that residues cannot impair consumer health, even if

consumed every day of their lives or consumed with a single

intake of large quantities of food, BfR conducts a comprehen-

sive health assessment of plant protection products within the

scope of the approval process and prepares recommendations

for maximum residue levels on this basis. The determination of

admissible quantities of an active substance that a food may

contain follows the ALARA principle

(As Low As Reasonably

Achievable)

Maximum residue levels are the maximum permissible concen-

trations of plant protection product active substances and their

degradation products which may remain in a foodstuff. They are

not determined solely on the basis of the health risk assessment,

they also take into account good agricultural practice. Compli-

ance with a maximum residue limit decides whether a food is

sellable or has to be taken off the market.