19 November 2008
ISBN: 978-1-100-10737-0 (978-1-100-10738-7
Cat. No.: H113-24/2008-29E (H113-24/2008-29E-PDF)

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Under the authority of the Pest Control Products Act, Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has concluded that the addition of new uses on cucurbit vegetables (Crop Group 9, see Appendix I) to the label of Bravo 500 Agricultural Fungicide, containing technical grade chlorothalonil, is acceptable. The specific uses approved in Canada are detailed on the label of Bravo 500 Agricultural Fungicide, Pest Control Products Act Registration Number 15723.

The evaluation of this chlorothalonil application indicated that the end-use product has merit and value and that the human health and environmental risks associated with the new uses are acceptable. Details regarding the registration can be found in the corresponding Evaluation Report that is available on the PMRA website, under Public Registry, Product Information, Current Applications.¹

Before registering a pesticide for food use in Canada, the PMRA must determine the quantity of residues that are likely to remain in or on the food when the pesticide is used according to label directions and that such residues will not pose an unacceptable health risk. This quantity is then legally established as a maximum residue limit (MRL). An MRL applies to the identified raw agricultural food commodity as well as to any processed food product that contains it, except where separate MRLs are specified for the raw agricultural commodity and a processed product made from it.

Consultation on the proposed MRLs for chlorothalonil is being conducted via this document (see Next Steps).

To comply with Canada's international trade obligations, consultation on the proposed MRLs is also being conducted internationally by notifying the World Trade Organization, as coordinated by the Standards council of Canada.

MRLs of 5.0P ppm have already been established for cucumbers, melons, pumpkins and squash. This action proposes MRLs at the same value for the remaining cucurbit vegetable commodities. The proposed MRLs for chlorothalonil in Canada in or on food, to be added to those already legally established, are as follows.

Table 1 Proposed Maximum Residue Limits for Chlorothalonil

Common Name	Residue Definition	MRL (ppm)	Food Commodity
Chlorothalonil	tetrachloroisophthalonitrile, including the metabolite 4-hydroxy-2,5,6-trichloro- 1,3-benzenedicarbonitrile	5	Balsam apples, balsam pears, cantaloupes*, chayote fruit, Chinese cucumbers, Chinese waxgourds, citron melons*, edible gourds (other than those listed in this item), muskmelons* (other than those listed in this item), summer squash**, watermelons*, West Indian gherkins and winter squash**

A complete list of all MRLs established in Canada can be found on the PMRA's MRL webpage.

International Situation and Trade Implications

MRLs may vary from one country to another for a number of reasons, including differences in pesticide use patterns and the locations of the field crop trials used to generate residue chemistry data. Table 2 identifies differences among MRLs in Canada, tolerances in the United States and Codex² MRLs. The proposed MRLs in Canada are the same as corresponding tolerances in the United States (tolerances listed in 40 CFR 180 by pesticide), but differ from the Codex MRL established for "melons, except watermelon." ( Codex MRLs are searchable by pesticide or commodity). However, note that Canadian MRLs are proposed to expand the established MRLs to include the entire crop group, whereas American tolerances and Codex MRLs are established only for the cucurbit commodities listed in Table 2.

Table 2 Comparison of Canadian MRL, the American Tolerance and Codex MRL

Food Commodity	Canadian MRL(ppm)	American Tolerance (ppm)	Codex MRL (ppm)
Cucurbit Vegetables	5.0 (all Crop Group 9 commodities as per Table 1)	5.0 (cucumber, melon, pumpkin, summer squash, winter squash)	5.0 (cucumber, summer squash, winter squash)
			2.0 (melons, except watermelon)

Next Steps

The PMRA invites the public to submit written comments on the proposed MRLs for chlorothalonil up to 75 days from the date of publication of this document. Please forward your comments to Publications (see contact information on the cover page of this document). The PMRA will consider all comments received before making a final decision on the proposed MRLs for chlorothalonil and posting an Established Maximum Residue Limit (EMRL) document on the PMRA's website.

Appendix I

Crop Groups: Numbers and Definitions

Crop Group Number	Name of the Crop Group	Food Commodities Included in the Crop Group
9	Cucurbit Vegetables	Balsam apples Balsam pears Cantaloupes Chayote fruit Chinese cucumbers Chinese waxgourds Citron melons Cucumbers Edible gourds (other than those listed in this item) Muskmelons (other than those listed in this item) Pumpkins Summer squash Watermelons West Indian gherkins Winter squash

References