APVMA: ‘Up to the product holder to notify customers of the recall’

The nation’s agricultural chemical regulator says it is up to the product holder to notify customers of recalls of chemicals, not them.

Australia’s regulatory authority for agricultural and veterinary chemicals has moved to clarify its role in the industry but has still not committed to enforcing a recall.

The statement comes as The Weekly Time revealed farmers could be storing and using recalled chemicals without knowing.

Last week, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority issued a release explaining its part in chemical regulation.

But in a carefully worded statement, the APVMA said its duty was to publish recalls on its website and in its gazette, to assess the risks around the recall and briefing the chemical company on its responsibilities and it “may” not would enforce a recall.

“If an agreement cannot be reached, the APVMA may start a compulsory recall,” the statement said.

“Australians expect that the agvet chemical products they buy are safe and effective and that product holders will take appropriate actions to protect the health and safety of consumers.

“Product holders are responsible for limiting the risk to public safety as quickly as possible by removing the product from sale, contacting consumers, and providing advice to anyone in possession of the recalled product.

“The holder of the product registration or active constituent approval is responsible for the recall, regardless of where the recalled product currently is in the supply chain – manufacturer, importer, distributor or retailer.”

The APVMA said it directed the recall process and enforced compliance, but said it was up to the product holder to notify customers of the recall, stopping supply of the product, and “choosing a remedy such as finding, retrieving, correcting or destroying an agricultural or veterinary chemical product within a distribution network”.

The company also must report back to the APVMA on what happened to the recalled product, and record keeping on how much of the chemical was sold and how much was returned, but this is not always audited.

“The APVMA may wish to audit the recall or exercise its monitoring powers to examine relevant records,” the regulator said.

The APMVA said state and territory authorities were in charge of the use of chemicals.