Plant Protection Products and their Residues
The Panel on Plant Protection Products and their Residues (PPR) provides scientific advice on the risk assessment of pesticides for operators, workers, consumers and the environment. The Panel develops and reviews guidance documents on the risk assessment of pesticides. This work supports the evaluation of active substances used in pesticides, which is carried out Rapporteur Member States and peer reviewed by EFSA staff.
PPR Panel Members are scientists from across Europe with expertise in:
- Active substances – chemical and microbiological (viruses, bacteria, fungi, etc)
- Physical-chemical properties (of plant protection products and their active substances)
- Methods of analysis (of plant protection products and of their residues)
- Toxicology and regulatory toxicology
- Non dietary exposure and risk assessment (of plant protection products)
- Dietary exposure and risk assessment (of residues of plant protection products in food and feed commodities)
- Environmental fate and behaviour (of plant protection products)
- Ecotoxicology
- Ecology and population dynamics
- Ecological/Environmental exposure and risk assessment.
Panel Members
Plenary meetings
Pesticides peer-review experts meetings
The Pesticides Peer Review Unit holds expert consultations on scientific and technical issues related to the peer review of a substance. They involve scientific experts nominated by Member States. These experts represent the following organisations:
- Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (Austria)
- Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment (Belgium)
- Scientific Institute of Public Health (Belgium)
- Sciensano (Belgium)
- Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, Risk Assessment Center on Food Chain (Bulgaria)
- Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (Bulgaria)
- Croatian Agency for Agriculture and Food (Croatia)
- Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health (Croatia)
- Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment (Cyprus)
- Central Institute for Supervising and Testing in Agriculture (Czech Republic)
- National Institute of Public Health (Czech Republic)
- Ministry of Environment and Food of Denmark, Environmental Protection Agency (Denmark)
- Estonian Agricultural Board (Estonia)
- Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency (Finland)
- National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (France)
- French Ministry of Agriculture and Food (France)
- Federal Environmental Agency (Germany)
- Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (Germany)
- Julius Kühn-Institute (Germany)
- Federal Institute of Risk Assessment (Germany)
- Benaki Phytopathological Institute (Greece)
- Ministry of Rural Development and Food (Greece)
- National Food Chain Safety Office (Hungary)
- Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Pesticide Registration and Control Divisions (Ireland)
- Ministry of Health (Italy)
- Istituto Superiore di Sanità (Italy)
- Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (Italy)
- ASST Fatebenefratelli Sacco (Italy)
- Università degli Studi di Milano (Italy)
- State Plant Protection Service (Latvia)
- State Plant Service under the Ministry of Agriculture (Lithuania)
- Administration des services techniques de l'agriculture (Luxembourg)
- Board for the Authorisation of Plant Protection Products and Biocides (Netherlands)
- Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (Netherlands)
- Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Norway)
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Poland)
- National Institute of Public Health - National Institute of Hygiene (Poland)
- Institute of Environmental Protection – National Research Institute (Poland)
- Direcção-Geral de Alimentação e Veterinária (Portugal)
- National Institute of Public Health (Romania)
- Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Romania)
- National Institute for Research and Development in Environmental Protection (Romania)
- Ministry of the Environment, National Agency for Environmental Protection (Romania)
- Ministry of Environment of the Slovak Republic, Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute (Slovakia)
- Public Health Authority of the Slovak Republic (Slovakia)
- Central Controlling and Testing Institute in Agriculture (Slovakia)
- Water Research Institute (Slovakia)
- University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Kosice (Slovakia)
- Institute of Apiculture (Slovakia)
- Agricultural Institute of Slovenia (Slovenia)
- National Institute of Public Health (Slovenia)
- Slovenian Institute of Hop Research and Brewing (Slovenia)
- Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment, Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for food safety, veterinary sector and plant protection (Slovenia)
- Swedish Food Agency (Sweden)
- Swedish Chemicals Agency (Sweden)
In line with the Decision of the Executive Director of the European Food Safety Authority on Competing Interest Management the submission of an Annual Declaration of Interest (ADoI) is compulsory for Peer Review Governmental Experts.
Expert consultations are divided into the following groups (each consultation involves a selection of experts from the relevant list of members):
Physical & Chemical Properties
Mammalian Toxicology
For minutes related to the Endocrine Disruptors properties please refer also to the meeting minutes in the Ecotoxicology section.
Residues
Fate and Behaviour
Ecotoxicology
For minutes related to the Endocrine Disruptors properties please refer also to the meeting minutes in the Mammalian Toxicology section.
Micro-organisms
Dates and draft discussion points
Pesticide Peer Review planned meetings 2024
2024 meetings:
- Pesticide Peer Review Experts' Teleconference January - February 2024
- Pesticide Peer Review Experts' Teleconference March 2024
- Pesticide Peer Review Experts' Teleconference May-June 2024
- Pesticide Peer Review Experts' Teleconference June-July 2024
Previous meetings:
Networks
What are EFSA's networks?
EFSA’s networks consist of nationally appointed EU Member State organisations with expertise in the fields covered by the network. Representatives of the Commission and of other organisations (including those from outside the EU) with specific expertise may also be invited to participate in the work of EFSA Networks.
Networks are chaired by EFSA and supported by relevant EFSA units. Their aim is to facilitate scientific cooperation in the field of EFSA’s mission by:
- coordinating activities,
- exchanging information,
- developing and implementing joint projects,
- and exchanging expertise and best practices.
- Decision concerning the establishment and operation of European Networks of scientific organisations operating in the fields within the Authority’s mission(35.46 KB)
Pesticide Steering Committee sub working group Bee Calculator
The members of the PSC sub working group Bee Calculator were nominated by the Member States participating in the PSC.
Pesticide Steering Committee sub working group MRL procedures
The members of the PSC sub working group MRL procedures were nominated by the Member States participating in the PSC.
Pesticide Steering Committee sub working group Risk Assessment on Bees
The members of the PSC sub working group Risk Assessment on Bees were nominated by the Member States participating in the PSC.
Pesticide Steering Network (PSN)
In September 2008, EFSA set up the Pesticide Steering Network. It was established to manage and plan the overall pesticide risk assessment and consider ways to further streamline the process. The main goals of the network are to:
- plan and monitor the risk assessment process;
- integrate the risk assessment and MRL setting processes;
- coordinate with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA);
- give advice on the prioritisation in the development and the updating of risk assessment guidance documents.
- Terms of reference last updated: 20 September 2023
- List of members last updated: 16 March 2023
Pesticide Steering Network on consultation for the corrigendum of the Aquatic Guidance Document (EFSA PPR Panel, 2013)
The members of the Pesticide Steering Network on consultation for the corrigendum of the Aquatic Guidance Document (EFSA PPR Panel, 2013) were nominated by the Member States participating in the PSN, including two participants on behalf of EFSA PPR panel.
Pesticide Steering Network on consultation on Draft Guidance of the PPR Panel on Residue Definition for Dietary Risk Assessment
The members of the Pesticide Steering Network on consultation on Draft Guidance of the PPR Panel on Residue Definition for Dietary Risk Assessment were nominated by the Member States participating in the PSN, including a participant on behalf of EFSA PPR panel.
Pesticide Steering Network sub working group IUCLID HYPERCARE
The members of the PSN sub working group IUCLID HYPERCARE were nominated by the Member States participating in the PSN and by the applicants owners of the substances included within the scope of the EFSA IUCLID HYPERCARE programme.
- Terms of reference last updated: 8 October 2021
- List of members last updated: 21 May 2021
Pesticide Steering Network – IUCLID sub-group
- List of members last updated: 11 October 2023
- Terms of reference last updated: 11 October 2023
Working groups
Azole-resistant Aspergillus – risk factors, prevention and control
Chitosan
Cumulative Risk Assessment (CRA) of pesticides
Developing IATA case studies on Developmental Neurotoxicity
Effect models in environmental risk assessment
Endocrine Disruptors
Historical Control Data
Microbial pesticides
Toxicological properties and MRL of acetamiprid and its metabolites
Update of OPEX Guidance and calculator
Closed working groups
Acetamiprid and flupyradifurone
Adverse Outcome Pathways AOP
Aged Soil Adsorption
Amphibian reptile opinion
Aquatic ecotoxicology
Bee Guidance Revision
Bee risk assessment
BEEHAVE evaluation
Consultation Group on endocrine disruption guidance
- EFSA has invited members of the Consultation Group to submit declarations of interest but, with the exception of stakeholder experts acting in a personal capacity, members are not obliged to do so.
For a full list of EFSA Member State and stakeholder experts taking part in the Consultation Group, please see here.