Withdrawn Projects

Garden Care Chemical products may be withdrawn from use for many reasons. In practice the most common reason is that a garden company will introduce a new product to replace an earlier product.

In addition since 1991 there has been an ongoing review of all garden (and agricultural chemicals) by the EU. This has resulted in and will continue to result in a number of products being revoked from use.

This means that after a certain date a product can no longer be sold and furthermore from a further date the product can no longer be used by the consumer. The product must then be disposed of safely.

This does not mean that the product is considered immediately dangerous to the user or the environment. If it were considered dangerous then it would be withdrawn from sale and use immediately by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate.

Where products are withdrawn it is most likely that the retailer will be contacted by the garden company who sold the product, and who will advise on suitable arrangements for withdrawing the product. It will depend on the type of withdrawal required and the timescale of the withdrawal.

Note the way the system works is quite complex and not easily understood. You should always make the supplying company the first point of contact to establish the position. All product labels give the telephone number of the supplying company helpline and they will be able to clarify any withdrawal issues with the product. 

However for the consumer or the retailer, if you suspect a product has been withdrawn and cannot establish the position then first determine the product name, active ingredient, name of manufacturer and the registration number . The registration number will be either a MAPP/MAFF or HSE number. That is a prefix MAPP etc followed by a number for example MAPP 13677.

If you are unable to determine whether a product has been withdrawn by contacting your supplier/retailer then you can contact the Chemicals Regulation Directorate communications team on 01904 455722

Note the timetable for withdrawal can vary, but there are two key dates for each product-the last date of sale by the retailer, and the last allowed date of use by the gardener.