CCM: Paraquat found in diquat for sale following ban on paraquat AS 08-22-2016

In the Glyphosate China Monthly Report 1607, CCM analyzed three disorder phenomena in China's sterilant herbicide market following China's ban on paraquat AS on 1 July, 2016 – price wars in the paraquat substitute market; difficulty for farmers and distributors in choosing substitutes for paraquat AS; fake and inferior substitutes flowing into the market.   Recently, another phenomenon has been found, namely that some diquat AS sold on the market had actually been paraquat AS.



Source: Baidu


On 8 Aug., 2016, the Shandong Institute for the Control of Agrochemicals (SICA) reported that it had detected paraquat in samples of diquat in Shandong Province, a large paraquat-producing region in China. Specifically, the paraquat content in three kinds of diquat 200 g/L AS was 22.50%, 9.40%, 20.70% respectively. In other words, the sampled diquat AS was actually paraquat 20% AS. In addition, paraquat and industrial waste sulfuric acid were also found to have been added to some glyphosate sold on the market.

 

The SICA speculated that this was mainly because:

 

1. Enterprises that produce paraquat AS for export added paraquat to diquat to sell on the domestic market for profit.

2. In order to reduce losses, after paraquat AS was banned, paraquat manufacturers pulled unsold paraquat AS from stores, repackaged it, and then sold it as diquat AS on the market.

3. Diquat enterprises added paraquat to their products to reduce production costs and increase product efficacy.

4. Unlicensed enterprises illegally produce fake and inferior diquat for higher profit.



 

The SICA is paying close attention to this phenomenon and announced four major measures to prevent it: 

 

  • Enterprises who sell export-oriented paraquat AS on the domestic market, use paraquat to simulate diquat, or add paraquat to diquat, will be punished by the Ministry of Agriculture of the People's Republic of China (MOA) and police departments
  • Law enforcement departments will secure paraquat inventories and offer opinions on disposal
  • The SICA will confiscate fake and inferior diquat and apply for funding to safely dispose of it; if a large quantity of products are confiscated and have no quality issues, designated reserve units for highly toxic pesticides will dispose of them efficiently as soon as possible according to highly toxic pesticide control regulations, after approval from the MOA
  • The SICA will strengthen the supervision on glyphosate sold on the market, and increase the detection index for sulfuric acid. If any problems are found, the SICA will timely inform the province and take action

 

It is hard to know whether the above phenomenon is occurring in other provinces/ municipalities. There has been no similar reported circumstance of this in Jiangsu Province, another large paraquat-producing region in China.

 

This article comes from Glyphosate China Monthly Report 1608, CCM

 



About CCM:

CCM is the leading market intelligence provider for China’s agriculture, chemicals, food & ingredients and life science markets. Founded in 2001, CCM offers a range of data and content solutions, from price and trade data to industry newsletters and customized market research reports. Our clients include Monsanto, DuPont, Shell, Bayer, and Syngenta. CCM is a brand of Kcomber Inc.

 

For more information about CCM, please visit www.cnchemicals.com or get in touch with us directly by emailing econtact@cnchemicals.com or calling +86-20-37616606.

 

Tag: paraquat  glyphosate

 

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