Phytopharmacovigilance, what is it?
Created by the future law for agriculture, food and forestry in October 2014, la phytopharmacovigilance rests on utwenty partners including the human and veterinary poison control centres, the Agricultural Social Mutual Fund and the ministries and public bodies in charge of monitoring environments, water, air or food. The system collects data from these networks, as well as reports made directly by professionals who use plant protection products, sell them or advise users. It therefore allows collect numerous data on the presence of pesticide residues in the environment, the exposures observed et impacts on the health of living beings and ecosystems. The objective is to ensure all-round vigilance of the effects linked to the use of these products. The bibliographic and media watch that we do also constitutes a source of information that can be the source of alerts, knowing that we pay specific attention to epidemiological studies. As part of the system, ANSES finally produces summary sheets for each active substance, all of which are available on our website.
What do the studies funded by phytopharmacovigilance cover?
To analyze reports of adverse effects or to make up for the lack of exposure data, ANSES finances studies and measurement campaigns using a budget specifically allocated to phytopharmacovigilance. In 2020, twenty-five studies were finalized and five new ones were startedcorresponding to around 1.4million euros. For example, two studies were launched to provide information on exposure in wine-growing regions. One relates to the impregnation with pesticides of residents living near agricultural crops carried out in collaboration with Public Health France (PestiRiv) and the other, to the geographical and statistical association between childhood cancers and residence near activities. agriculture carried out by Inserm and Public Health France (GEOCAP-Agri). If the contamination of an environment is not sufficiently documented, the financing of a measurement campaign can be decided, as was the case for ambient air and soil. In total, more than forty studies have been funded since the creation of the phytopharmacovigilance system.
What is the impact of this device?
All of this data is systematically examined when re-examining marketing authorisations. If the assessments reveal frequent contamination exceeding the thresholds, this can lead to restricting or even prohibiting the use of a product. In the event of a health alert, the data is used without waiting for the expiry of the regulatory review of the marketing authorization. Thus, the episode of group poisoning with metamsodium in the fall of 2018 in Maine-et-Loire led to the acceleration of the withdrawal from the market of products containing this active substance. Phytopharmacovigilance also makes it possible to change regulatory systems. For example, the data documenting the mortality of bees and the contamination of hives led ANSES to recommend extending the regulatory mechanism protecting pollinators to fungicides and herbicides, whereas it only concerned insecticides and acaricides. This provision is being examined as part of the 2021 Pollinators plan. With phytopharmacovigilance, ANSES thus has a global and integrated vision of the impact of plant protection products, throughout their use.
