Safeners & Synergists
Date: 15 May 2020
Beside active substances, plant protection products may contain safeners or synergists which are also in the scope of Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009. According to Article 2.3 of this Regulation, safeners and synergists are defined as:
- Safeners: “Substances or preparations which are added to a plant protection product to eliminate or reduce phytotoxic effects of the plant protection product on certain plants”
- Synergists: “Substances or preparations which, while showing no or only weak activity […], can give enhanced activity to the active substance(s) in a plant protection product”
According to Article 25 of Regulation 1107/2009, the same conditions for the approval of safeners and synergists as for active substances shall apply. However, the regulatory procedures for the registration of such substances and preparations are not established yet and data requirements, as already available for active substances and plant protection products, have to be defined for safeners and synergists. Therefore, for the time being, national frameworks have to be used for registration of respective substances and preparations.
Although no harmonised EU requirements for the approval of safeners and synergists exists, a (national) authorisation is mandatory for placing safeners and synergists on the market.
Carla Lorenz