United States Office of Enforcement 

Agency Washington, DC 20460 www.epa.gov 

EPA 305-F-00-006 

Environmental Protection & Compliance Assurance October 2000 

Agrichemicals 

Food Quality Protection Act – 

Pesticide Reviews

Ag Center 

Helping Agriculture Comply with 

Environmental Requirements 

F 

Review of Pesticides and 

Pesticide Registrations 

The Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) of 1996 amended the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, 

and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA). 

These amendments fundamentally changed the way EPA regulates pesticides. FQPA: 

• mandates a single, health-based standard for all pesticides in all foods 

• provides special protections for infants and children 

• expedites approval of safer pesticides 

• creates incentives for the development and maintenance of effective crop protection tools 

for American farmers 

• requires periodic re-evaluation of pesticide registrations and tolerances to ensure that the 

scientific data supporting pesticide registrations will remain up to date in the future. 

This fact sheet will help you understand the law regarding reviews of pesticides and pesticide 

registrations. 

Issue: Periodic Review of 

Pesticide Registrations 

Previous law and practice 

Under amendments to FIFRA enacted 

in 1988, EPA is reviewing all pesticides 

first registered before 

November 1984 and their associated 

tolerances (maximum limits for pesticide 

residues in foods). This review would 

bring the science base supporting 

registrations and tolerances up to 

current standards, on a one-time-only 

basis. 

O C U S O N 
EPA must complete 

reassessment of 33 

percent of tolerances 

by August 1999, 66 

percent by August 

2002, and the 

remaining tolerances by 

August 2006. 

FQPA 

FQPA requires EPA to reassess all 

tolerances and tolerance exemptions 

that were in effect when the law was 

passed in August 1996. 

In addition to requiring tolerance 

reassessments, the law requires EPA to 

establish a system for periodic review of 

all pesticide registrations, aimed at 

updating them on a 15-year cycle. If new 

data are needed for these reviews, or for 

any other review, EPA may require 

them at any time under FIFRA's "data 

call-in" authority in Section 3(c)(2)(B). 

What does this mean? 

The goal of this requirement is to ensure 

that all pesticides continue to meet 

up-to-date standards for safety testing, 

public health, and environmental 

protection. 

Within 10 years, EPA must reassess all 

existing tolerances, considering 

pesticides that appear to pose the 

greatest risks first, to ensure that they 

meet FQPA’s new safety standard. EPA 

retains authority to require data and 

take action if needed in the interim, but 

at a minimum, registrations should be 

updated on a 15-year cycle. 

In completing each review of a 

registered pesticide’s human health and 

environmental effects, the Agency 

makes changes to the pesticide’s 

registration where necessary to reduce 

risks. EPA’s evaluation and regulatory 

changes are summarized in a Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED). 

Of the 612 pesticide cases (or groups of 

related active ingredients) subject to reregistration, EPA had issued a total of 

198 REDs as of September 30, 1999. An 

additional 231 cases have been 

voluntarily cancelled, leaving 192 REDs 

to be completed. (To obtain REDs and 

fact sheets, see www.epa.gov/REDs) 

Accomplishments since FQPA 

EPA is using the re-registration program 

to accomplish tolerance reassessment, 

the cornerstone of the FQPA. Through 

re-registration, the Agency is making 

decisions on the future of both existing 

tolerances and pesticide registrations. 

As required by FQPA, EPA reassessed 

3,290 tolerances by July 30, 1999, 

surpassing the 33 percent goal for 

August 1999. 

Since FQPA was enacted, EPA has 

completed 48 post-FQPA REDs, 33 for 

pesticides with food uses. Seven of 

these were voluntary cancellations, and 

all include measures to reduce risks and 

improve the safety of the uses that were 

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Agrichemicals/Food Quality Protection Act - Review 
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Food Quality Protection Act Review of Pesticides and Pesticide Registrations 

EPA is involving 

stakeholders in an 

ongoing dialogue about 

the best ways to protect 

human health and the 

environment while 

streamlining 

registration procedures. 

allowed to continue. Tolerances for the 

chemicals that are eligible for reregistration have been found to meet 

the FQPA safety standard either with 

modifications or as they stood. 

Issue: Review of Antimicrobial 

Pesticides 

Previous law and practice 

There were no special provisions for 

antimicrobial pesticides under previous 

law. EPA and FDA shared 

responsibilities for some products, and 

EPA reviewed applications consistent 

with Agency priorities, resources, and 

the timing of submissions. 

FQPA 

The law reforms the antimicrobial 

registration process, with the goal of 

achieving significantly shorter EPA 

review times. It also amends the 

definition of pesticide under FIFRA to 

exclude liquid chemical sterilants, which 

are to be regulated exclusively by FDA. 

What does this mean? 

EPA has made significant changes in the 

way it manages antimicrobial 

registration activities. EPA has greatly 

reduced the backlog of applications for 

registration activity, and is processing 

registration submissions more quickly 

than in the past. 

EPA has also taken major steps to 

address the proliferation of unregistered 

“treated articles,” such as cutting boards 

and kitchenware, that make unlawful 

pesticidal claims and could lead to 

increased public health risks. 

Issue: Expediting Review of Safer 

Pesticides 

Previous law and practice 

While there were no comparable 

provisions in previous law, EPA has 

established policies that give priority to 

applications for pesticides that meet 

reduced risk criteria. 

FQPA 

The law requires EPA to develop 

criteria for reduced-risk pesticides, and 

expedite review of applications that 

reasonably appear to meet the criteria. 

What does this mean? 

FQPA formalized the expedited review 

for reduced-risk pesticides. EPA 

published the review process as Pesticide 

Registration Notice 97-3 on September 

4, 1997. 

The reduced-risk program, together with 

a streamlined registration process for 

biopesticides, has resulted in dozens of 

new “safer” products being introduced 

into the marketplace, providing greater 

protections to human health and the 

environment, and clear benefits to 

growers and homeowners. 

For more information 

You can find more information about 

antimicrobials at 

http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/fqpa, and 

http://www.epa.gov/oppad001, 

or on food safety at 

http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/tfsy.html 

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Agrichemicals

Food Quality Protection Act Review of Pesticides and Pesticide Registrations 

For more facts about compliance, call 

the Ag Center’s toll-free number, 

1-888-663-2155. Materials can be sent to 

The Ag Center you by fax or by mail, or you can talk to 

welcomes an Ag Center representative. For a list 

comments on this of all publications available from the Ag 

document and its Center, request document number 

other services. 10001, “Ag Center Publications.” 

National Agriculture Compliance

Assistance Center

901 N. 5th Street

Kansas City, KS 66101

Toll-free: 1-888-663-2155 

Internet: www.epa.gov/agriculture 

Fax: 913-551-7270 

United States Environmental 

Protection Agency 

Washington, DC 20460 

Ag Center Fact Sheet Series Page 4