The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), a division of Health Canada, released its final decisions on the pollinator re-evaluations of three neonicotinoid insecticides: clothianidin (Clutch), imidacloprid (Admire), and thiamethoxam (Cruiser, Actara).
Health Canada determined that the continued registration of imidacloprid, clothianidin, or thiamethoxam products are acceptable; however, certain uses have been cancelled to address possible risks to pollinators. Many of these cancelled uses affect Canadian fruit and vegetable growers.
The PMRA did a thorough science-based risk assessment and accounted for real exposure risks such as plant pollinator attractiveness. For these reasons, most uses on non-attractive crops such as root and tuber vegetables (including potatoes), brassica leafy vegetables, leafy vegetables, and (indoor) greenhouse vegetables remain unchanged. All seed treatments were also approved for continued use.