The LD50 test is now prohibited by law in some Australian states and is only rarely practised in New Zealand. But before many medicines and farm chemicals can be registered for use here, the manufacturer must by law prove they are safe to use. This means in practice that they must provide toxicity information based on LD50 or similar tests carried out overseas. 50 test is the best-known of the standard safety tests. It measures the dose which kills 50 per cent of a test population.
Exposure is tested by mouth, skin contact, injection and inhalation.