China issues Catalogue for Guiding Industry Restructuring (2024 Version)

On 27 December, 2023, the National Development andReform Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NDRC) announced that the Catalogue for Guiding Industry Restructuring(2024 Version) (the Catalogue) was approved by the Sixth Conference of the NDRCon 1 December, 2023 and would start to take effect from 1 February, 2024. Atthat time, the 2019 version expired.

Contents in the Catalogue that are related to thepesticide industry are as follow.

Category I The Encouraged

Agriculture,forestry, animal husbandry, and fishery

13. Greenagriculture: Demonstration and application of fullybiodegradable plastic mulches and high-strength & easily recyclable plasticmulches on farmland; risk management and remediation of contaminated farmland;development of high-quality, safe and environmental-friendly agriculturalinputs including feed, feed additives, fertilizers, pesticides and veterinarydrugs that meet the requirements of green and low-carbon circulation and foodadditives that are allowed to be used for production of green food; developmentand application of technology for monitoring agricultural products and environmentin their geographic origins; development and application of technology for innocuousand valuing treatment of organic wastes and industrialized production oforganic fertilizers.

Petrochemistry

3. Pesticides:Development and production of pesticides of new categories and newformulation types, special-purpose intermediates and auxiliaries that arehighly efficient, safe and environmentally friendly; production of chiral andthree-dimensional-structure pesticides through directional synthesis method;development of new biopesticide products and new technologies and production.

Category II The Restricted

Petrochemistry

8. Productionequipment for high-toxic and high-residue pesticide technicals and othersposing significant influence on the environment or quality safety ofagricultural products (including omethoate, terbufos, methidathion, methylbromide, methomyl, aldicarb, carbofuran, diphacinone-sodium, diphacinone, warfarin,coumatetralyl, bromadiolone, brodifacoum, botulinum toxin, bisultap, aluminiumphosphide, organochlorines, organotin insecticides, dithiocarbamates, sodiumnitrophenolate/potassium nitrophenolate, metsulfuron-methyl, demeton, dimethoate,fipronil, carbosulfan, flubendiamide, fenvalerate, acephate, carbendazim and daminozide).

9. Productionequipment for pesticides including glyphosate, chlorpyrifos, triazophos,paraquat, chlorothalonil, abamectin, imidacloprid, acetochlor, chloropicrin, alachlor,2,4-D, acetamiprid, thiamethoxam, atrazine, butachlor, MCPA, ametryn, dicamba, diquat,glufosinate-ammonium, clethodim, mancozeb, trichlorfon, triadimenol, propiconazole,iprodione, paclobutrazol and lime sulfur.

Category III The obsolete

Outmodedproduction technique

7. Sodium-method technique for producing paraquat; techniquefor synthesizing dichlorvos through trichlorfon-dehydrochlorinated process;technique and equipment for manual packaging(filling) pesticide products ofsmall package (weight≤1 kg);powdery pesticide products producing by the Raymond machine method; productionequipment using hexachlorobenzene as a raw material to manufacture pentachlorophenol(PCP) and PCP-Na.

10. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons(HCFCs; not including those used as a raw material for manufacturing downstreamchemicals) for controlled purposes including refrigeration, foaming andcleaning; 1,1,1-trichloroethane (methyl chloroform) for cleaning; carbontetrachloride (CTC) products and others manufactured by using CTC as anauxiliary; production technique for synthesizing fluoropolymers using perfluorooctanoicacid (PFOA) as an auxiliary; production equipment for DDT-containing coatingsand non-closed production equipment for dicofol using DDT as a raw material(China is eliminating this production method according to the People's Republic of China NationalImplementation Plan for the Stockholm Convention on Persistent OrganicPollutants).

Outmodedproduct

5.High-toxic pesticides: BHC, ethylene dibromide, daminozide, N,N'-methylene-bis-(2-amino-1, 3, 4-thiadiazole) (MATDA), nitrofen, chlordimeform,tetramine, fluoroacetamide, sodium fluoroacetate, dibromochloropropane, sulfotep(Suhua 203), phosphamidon, gliftor, silatrane, methamidophos, parathion, parathion-methyl,monocrotophos, phosfolan, asomate, urbacide and all arsenic compounds, mercuriccompounds, plumbum compounds, aqueous solution (AS) of glyphosate with contentof glyphosate <30%, phosfolan-methyl,phosfolan-methyl,calcium phosphide, zinc phosphide, fenamiphos, fonofos, megnesium phosphide, cadusafos,coumaphos, sulfotep, terbufos, phorate, 2,4-D butylate, isofenphos-methyl, isocarbophos,ethoprophos, nonylphenol (a pesticide auxiliary), dicofol, chlorsulfuron, and ethametsulfuron.

6. Productslisted in the People's Republic of ChinaNational Implementation Plan for the Stockholm Convention on Persistent OrganicPollutants: chlordane, heptachlor, methyl bromide, DDT, hexachlorobenzene,mirex, lindane, camphechlor, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, endosulfan, sulfluramid,chlordecone, α-hexachlorocyclohexane,β-hexachlorocyclohexane, hexachlorobutadiene, polychlorinatedbiphenyls (PCBs), pentachlorobenzene (PeCB), hexabromobiphenyl, tetrabromodiphenylether & pentabromodiphenyl ether, hexabromodiphenyl ether & heptabromodiphenylether, hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanesulfonylfluoride (POSF), perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) and its salts &related compounds, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and its salts & relatedcompounds, decabromodiphenyl oxide, short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs), pentachlorophenoland its salts & esters, and polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) (only used inaccordance with a specific exemption).