The Chilean Agricultural Service (SAG) has ordered a ban on agrochemical formulations containing the mixture of glyphosate with the surfactant Polyoxyethylene (POEA), also called "tallowamine".

Exempt Resolution No. 5328/2022 transformed Chile into the first country on the American continent to generate a regulation of these characteristics. According to the SAG, the decision was taken after technical evaluation based on scientific basis, and that "reaffirms the commitment of the Ministry of Agriculture to work for the development of sustainable agriculture, which does not pose risks to the health of people, animals and the environment".

With this normative act, the Chilean body says it intends to ensure that the supply of glyphosate arriving in Chile has the same quality as those used in European countries, preventing lots of older and more toxic formulations still authorized in other countries from enter the countries of the region.

The surfactant tallowamine, in combination with glyphosate, facilitates the absorption of this herbicide in weeds. This mixture is assessed as having a greater toxicological hazard compared to formulations containing other surfactants, a fact that has led Eu member countries to ban this combination.

The SAG stresses that the importance of strictly following the safety measures imposed by law, respecting the bull of agrochemicals. In addition, Chileans say, a "rigorous control and training program is underway to promote the correct use of these chemicals."

"The commercialization of pesticides for agricultural use in Chile should always be carried out through formal channels, which correspond to establishments that communicated their start of activities before the SAG and inform year after year the products they sell and the volumes sold," warns the official agency. "Similarly, these establishments are regularly audited to verify compliance with current standards," concludes the SAG.

Source: Agrolink