21 November 2008
ISBN: 978-1-100-10793-6 (978-1-100-10794-3)
Cat. No.: H113-24/2008-37E (H113-24/2008-37E-PDF)

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Under the authority of the Pest Control Products Act, Health Canada's Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has conditionally registered technical grade fluazinam and the end-use product Allegro 500F Agricultural Fungicide for use in Canada on potatoes. The specific use approved in Canada is detailed on the product label of Allegro 500F Agricultural Fungicide, Pest Control Products Act Registration Number 27517.

The evaluation of these fluazinam applications indicated that the end-use product has merit and value and that the human health and environmental risks associated with its use are acceptable. Details regarding these registrations can be found in Regulatory Note REG2003-12, Fluazinam. Also note that the Agency published Proposed Registration Decision PRD2008-08, Fluazinam, on 28 May 2008, proposing to convert the registration from conditional to full. Consultation on PRD2008-08 has concluded and a corresponding Registration Decision document will be forthcoming.

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 fluazinam is being conducted via this document (see Next Steps). Residue trial data supporting the MRL for potatoes is summarized in REG2003-12 (see Appendix I, Table 5).

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.

The proposed MRL for fluazinam in Canada in or on food is as follows.

Table 1 Proposed Maximum Residue Limits for Fluazinam

Common Name	Residue Definition	MRL (ppm)	Food Commodity
Fluazinam	3-chloro-N-[3-chloro-2,6-dinitro-4-(trifluoromethyl) phenyl]-5-(trifluoromethyl)-2-pyridinamine	0.02	Potatoes

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, the proposed MRL for dry beans in Canada differs from the corresponding tolerance established in the United States (tolerances listed in  40 CFR Part 180 by pesticide) Currently, Codex¹ MRLs have not been established for dimethenamid on dry beans ( Codex MRLs searchable by pesticide or commodity).

Next Steps

The PMRA invites the public to submit written comments on the proposed MRLs for fluazinam 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 acequinocyl and posting an Established Maximum Residue Limit (EMRL) document on the PMRA's website.

References

¹ Codex is an international organization under the auspices of the United Nations that develops international food standards, including MRLs.