Agrochemical registrations by new Brazilian government in line with pace of previous one

During the first semester of the new Brazilian government, which took office this year, the Ministry of Agriculture approved the registration of 231 pesticides.

The pace of approvals during this period is comparable to the first year of former President Jair Bolsonaro's term.

These approvals are being made under the new rules established by a decree issued by Bolsonaro in October 2021, which accelerated the approval process for such products.

A report from the Ministry of Agriculture on the subject shows that the majority of this year's registrations are for generic (off-patent) products or formulations adapted with generics.

According to experts, generics do not pose risks as they have already undergone testing, and the increased quantities of these products in the market do not necessarily mean more chemicals in production, as new technologies are often more efficient.

Furthermore, they argue that generics serve the economic function of reducing the prices paid by producers, stimulating competition and improving profitability.

On the other hand, 17 of the approved agrochemicals are compositions with new active ingredients.

The Mapa report also indicates that five products were classified under various levels of ″highly toxic″ to human health.

Regarding environmental impact, two were categorized as ″highly dangerous″ and 47 as ″very dangerous.″

The Parliamentary Front for Agriculture (FPA), which brings together politicians representing agricultural producers, stressed that Brazil, as an agricultural powerhouse, needs these substances, and legislation is key to enabling the country to have access to more efficient products.

"Currently, there is no economically viable compatible technology in the world to replace the use of pesticides. Therefore, Brazil, as one of the largest global exporters, must adopt more modern products already used by other countries," the entity said in a statement signed by its president, Deputy Pedro Lupion.

The Brazilian Parliament is still debating the regulations for the registration of agrochemicals provided in Bill 6,299/02, which is expected to be voted on soon.

This new regulation revises the Brazilian Agrochemical Law, which dates back to 1989, amending or repealing numerous provisions, such as deadlines for authorization.

Under the old law, the registration process could take up to seven years, but the new regulation reduces this period to two years, with the possibility of obtaining temporary registration or authorization in case of delays. 

Some of these criteria have already been adopted through that decree issued by Jair Bolsonaro in 2021.