International regulation of termiticides an industry perspective

Abstract:
Compliance costs in the pesticide industry have grown considerably. This has been driven by new scientific methods used to assess pesticide risk and exposure. At the same time advances in computer technology and the Internet have lent credibility to data harmonization such that the industry goal of “registered once, registered everywhere” is increasingly becoming a possibility. Although international data harmonization is actively being pursued for the dominant agricultural uses, it has not even been considered to date for other pesticide uses, namely termiticides. While the toxicological and environmental data requirements for the core active ingredient may be the subject of harmonization efforts, significant and often conflicting differences exist with regards to their performance characteristics. From an industry perspective regulatory planning for termiticide development and ultimately registration is difficult with each country varying in some aspect of their performance data requirements. Variables such as climate, soil characteristics, and termite species vary considerably and affect product performance. In the United States the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires five years of performance data from four different regions within the U.S. for a new termiticide, whereas in other countries, one year of field evaluation data is required. Timely approval of termiticides therefore necessitates an open, continuing dialogue with regulatory officials to fully grasp all these differences. Regulatory standards for termiticides are unique, and their performance standards clearly separate these products from all other pesticides such as biocides and agricultural products. Efforts have begun to catalog and standardize performance standards for these other products whereas the global disparity in performance regulatory standards for termiticide development inhibit these efforts and effectively limit product registration and innovation.