Counterfeit products account for 5-7% of the European and UK pesticides market and more must be done to get the issue higher on the political agenda, Dow AgroSciences’ managing director David Scorer says.
Most come from the rapidly developing China, which has some 2,700 pesticide companies, manufacturing around 450 active substances, he says. “Counterfeit products are worth 300-500m euros per year and the Ukraine is an increasingly important transit point into Western Europe.”
Counterfeits range from sophisticated copies of legitimate products to re-packaged or diluted products – e.g. in a few cases herbicides have been packaged as fungicides. While some may look convincing and their price attractive, there is potential for crop damage, adverse effects on health and the environment and lower efficacy resulting in a risk of yield loss, he warns.
“The European Crop Protection Agency – through Croplife International - is raising awareness and working with customs inspectors to reduce the problem, but we still need to get it higher on the political agenda, in the EU and around the world.
“Others in the food chain have been reluctant to tackle the problem, so we need to work with them as well.”
Mr Scorer advises growers to only buy products from trusted suppliers, or direct from the manufacturer.
Read David Richardson's blog on fake ag chems from China.