Fipronil Again Causes Acute Bee Poisoning: How Can the Loopholes in Pesticide Flow Management Be Closed?
After the fipronil egg scandal that caused an uproar not long ago, a large number of bees recently died in Puli, Nantou. Testing of the bee carcasses confirmed acute fipronil poisoning, and yesterday even lemons advertised as organic tested positive for fipronil.
But after January of year 105 (2016), the 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate, because of its carcinogenic risk and the fact that residues were frequently detected, had its "domestic use methods and scope deleted," meaning that apart from manufacturing and processing for export, it may not be used domestically; both the buying and selling and the use of fipronil suspension concentrate are illegal. So why is this formulation still circulating on the market? Is there a problem with the management of pesticide distribution?
On this point, Feng Haidong, deputy director-general of the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, admitted candidly, "The pesticide distribution management mechanism has not been in place for long, and it indeed still needs improvement." At the same time, the bureau will also announce today (September 6) that the 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate is a "banned pesticide," prohibiting the "import, processing and manufacturing, sale and use" of this formulation of fipronil, in the hope of strengthening management of the formulation and reducing situations in which the pesticide is "illegally diverted."
Fipronil is highly effective against pests, relatively harmless to animals, and highly safe
Fipronil is simultaneously a pesticide, a veterinary drug and an environmental drug, and the applicable scope and regulations differ for these three uses. In the past it was very commonly used on crops, including the broad-spectrum insecticidal 4.95% suspension concentrate (now banned), granules used to control pests on rice and corn (0.3% fipronil granules), and also spot-on drops used to kill fleas on dogs and cats (such as the product "Frontline").
Tseng Te-tzu, an honorary distinguished professor in the Department of Plant Pathology at National Chung Hsing University, explained that fipronil is a neurotoxin with very high effectiveness against pests; a single hectare of field needs only ten to eighty grams to eliminate insects, but it is relatively harmless to animals, and if used according to regulations it is a very safe formulation.
If it is harmless, why ban domestic use of the 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate? Inspection bureau: residues are often detected in testing
Since it is a safe formulation, why was the use method and scope of the 4.95% suspension concentrate deleted in the first place? On this point, the bureau pointed out that it is because fipronil is of moderate toxicity, carries a carcinogenic risk, and has a fairly low Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI), while the 4.95% suspension concentrate was mostly used to control crop diseases and pests, fruit tree diseases and pests, and vegetable diseases and pests. Because farming in Taiwan is mostly intensive and the risk of contamination from neighboring fields is high, crop testing often detects residues, so on January 1 of year 105 (2016) its use method and scope were deleted.
What does deleting the use method and scope mean? The bureau explained that it means the 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate may no longer be used on the crops for which it was originally recommended, and farmers may not go and buy it on their own, but its pesticide permit has not been revoked, so it can still be processed and manufactured for export use.
Fipronil causes trouble again: mass acute poisoning deaths of bees in Puli, Nantou, fipronil detected in bee carcasses
Although it has been banned for domestic use, fipronil has repeatedly caused major harm. Last month, unscrupulous operators appeared in Changhua and other places, selling 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate directly to chicken farmers for use against lice, which in turn caused fipronil levels exceeding standards to be detected in farm eggs; after a nationwide survey, a total of 44 farms were found to have fipronil residues.
In addition, last week a large number of bees died in Puli, Nantou. Sampling by the Tea Research and Extension Station confirmed that it was acute poisoning caused by fipronil (bee body dosage of 0.033μg/bee). Samples are currently also being collected in Puli, Zhongliao, Caotun and other places in Nantou for successive testing.
Not only that, even products advertised as organic were hit. The Taipei City Department of Health yesterday also detected fipronil at seven times the permitted level in organic lemons sold at "St. Dalfour" on Tianmu West Road.
Inspection bureau: September 6 announcement that the 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate is a banned pesticide
After fipronil continued to circulate on the market and cause problems large and small, the Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine of the Council of Agriculture therefore scheduled an announcement for September 6 this year that the 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate is a banned pesticide, prohibiting the "import, processing and manufacturing, sale and use" of this formulation of fipronil, in the hope of strengthening management of the formulation and reducing situations in which the pesticide is "illegally diverted."
Frequent reports of problems with pesticide distribution management? Inspection bureau: it indeed still needs improvement
However, with the above violations of use continuing, does this mean there is a problem with pesticide distribution management? On this point, Feng Haidong, deputy director-general of the bureau, admitted candidly, "The distribution management mechanism has not been in place for long, and it indeed still needs improvement."
Feng further explained that among the current control measures, one part consists of routine and random sampling tests on agricultural products; if a problem is found, investigators then trace it back through pesticide sales distribution or the account records of pesticide shops, but violations or abnormalities are very hard to learn about from this. Therefore, the agricultural authorities also announced in April last year that more than three thousand pesticide manufacturing and selling businesses nationwide are required to regularly report data on the import, production and sale of pesticides.
Electronic reporting system penetration only fifty percent; inspection bureau: still needs promotion, will strengthen reporting frequency of businesses in the future
Feng stated that there are currently two major control systems. One is the "pesticide sales reporting system"; businesses may use paper records or upload information to the pesticide sales management website, which also serves for their own bookkeeping. Retailers, for example, report once every three months, while wholesalers report once every two months.
In addition, in order to conform to electronic record-keeping management, the bureau is also promoting the "pesticide product point-of-sale management system (Point Of Sales, or POS system for short)." Feng Haidong pointed out that this system allows upstream and retail businesses to upload each sales record in real time via a connection, and it is also linked to information from major manufacturers such as Sinon, making it a key project in pesticide distribution management. Once there are sales records from the upstream and downstream of pesticides, comparisons can be used to confirm where pesticides actually go, so as to reduce occurrences similar to direct selling.
"However, the penetration rate is currently only about fifty percent." Feng Haidong also stated that this system still needs to be promoted more widely. As the main force behind pesticide distribution reporting, the bureau, in addition to planning to fully discontinue paper records, also expects to raise the reporting frequency of businesses and increase the degree of immediacy to prevent false or omitted reporting from occurring.
Feng Haidong: if you still have fipronil on hand, hand it in as soon as possible to avoid breaking the law
As for sales through the internet or unclear channels, Feng Haidong emphasized that after fipronil is announced as a banned drug, if there are any further sales, it will not only violate the Agro-pesticides Management Act but will also carry criminal liability. Violators will face imprisonment of not less than 6 months and not more than 5 years, and in addition a fine of not less than NT$1 million and not more than NT$5 million. The bureau will also send people to investigate online, and therefore calls on the public to hand over any 4.95% fipronil suspension concentrate in their possession to the original pesticide manufacturers or sellers as soon as possible for recycling.