Legislation

EU Pesticides Database

The EU Pesticides Database allows users to search for information on active substances used in plant protection products, Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) in food products, and emergency authorisations of plant protection products in Member States.
 

Here are some key regulations and directives on pesticides and contaminants in food and feed:

Pesticides: 

• Maximum Residue Levels in food and feed: Regulation (EC) No 396/2005 and EU Pesticide Database
• Placing of plant protection products on the market: Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009

Contaminants:

• Maximum Levels in food: Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/915
• Sampling and analysis of mycotoxins in food: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2782
• Sampling and analysis of plant toxins in food: Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2783

Feed: 

• Undesirable substances in animal feed: Directive 2002/32/EC

Organic products: 

• Organic production and labelling of organic products: Regulation (EU) 2018/848

Babyfood: 

• Infant formulae and follow-on formulae: Commission Directive 2006/141/EC
• Food intended for infants and young children: Regulation (EU) No 609/2013

 Users can use the following search options to find information:

• Active substances
  The database contains information on active substances (including those that are low-risk or candidates for substitution) and basic substances, either approved or non-approved in the EU. Some safeners and synergists are also listed but these have not yet been assessed at EU level.
  You can find the latest updates related to active substances here.
• Food products
  Users can search for a particular food product (e.g. oranges) and retrieve the MRLs for all pesticide residues that apply to that product.
• Pesticide residues and the MRLs that apply for such residues in food products
  Users can select a particular pesticide residue in specific food products and find the current or historical MRLs that legally apply. Users can also download data on MRLs.
  You can find the latest updates related to MRLs.
• Emergency Authorisations of plant protection products in Member States of the European Union.
  Emergency authorisations granted in accordance with Article 53 of Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 by Member States from June 2016 onwards are present in the database. Users can search by various parameters to identify relevant emergency authorisations.
• Data download and APIs
  In addition to browsing our comprehensive data online, we offer convenient download options for easy access to the information, this functionality aims to streamline your access to pesticides data.
  For IT specialists and developers, we also have machine-to-machine APIs (Application Programming Interface). The APIs provide a direct link to our database, allowing you to programmatically retrieve the latest pesticide information for your applications, research projects, or analyses.
  Explore the possibilities, download data, or leverage our API for a more automated approach.

The EU Pesticides Database provides details of emergency authorisations granted by Member States, and are entered in the E-Submission Food Chain (ESFC) Platform [data entered from June 2016 – December 2022 in the Plant Protection Products Application Management System (PPPAMS) were migrated to ESFC].

Member States are fully responsible for the granting emergency authorisations. The information provided is the sole responsibility of Member State and therefore any questions related to specific authorisations should be addressed directly to the relevant Member State competent authority.