Pyraclostrobin Fungicide Renewal 2026: What Manufacturers and Farmers Must Do

Key data

Manufacturers of plant protection products containing pyraclostrobin, farmers who apply them and distributors who market them have an immediate task ahead: to review whether their national authorizations remain valid under the new conditions set by the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1976, published on 9 September 2026.

Pyraclostrobin is a fungicide widely used to protect crops from fungal diseases. Its approval as an active substance in the EU is governed by Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009, which regulates the marketing of plant protection products in the European market. This renewal is neither automatic nor neutral: it may entail stricter use conditions based on the most recent scientific evaluation.

What does this regulation establish?

Regulation 2026/1976 formally renews the approval of pyraclostrobin as an active substance in the European Union. To do so, it amends the annex of the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 540/2011, which is the official register of active substances approved for plant protection use in the EU.

The key elements established by this regulation are:

• Pyraclostrobin maintains its status as an approved active substance in the EU for use in plant protection products.
• The renewal is carried out in accordance with the procedure of Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009, which requires an updated scientific evaluation before each renewal.
• The renewal may include stricter use conditions or restrictions compared to the previous approval, based on the results of such evaluation.
• The annex of Implementing Regulation 540/2011 is amended to reflect the new approval and its conditions.
• Manufacturers of plant protection products containing pyraclostrobin must review their national authorizations to ensure compliance with the new conditions.

Economic and operational impact

The renewal of pyraclostrobin has direct operational consequences for the entire plant protection sector chain:

• Plant protection product manufacturers: If the new approval conditions are more restrictive than the previous ones, they may be forced to reformulate products, update labels, modify use instructions or request new national authorizations. Each of these processes has significant regulatory and time costs.
• Distributors: They must verify that products in stock and in the catalog remain compliant under the new conditions. Products authorized under previous more permissive conditions may require documentation updates or market withdrawal if they do not meet the new requirements.
• Farmers: They must confirm that the products they regularly use remain authorized and that doses, crops or application conditions have not changed. Applying a product outside authorized conditions may result in legal consequences and compromise crop marketing.

Failure to adapt to the new conditions may result in the marketing of non-compliant products, with the legal, economic and reputational risks that this entails for manufacturers and distributors, and certification problems for farmers' production.

Who does it affect?

• Manufacturers of plant protection products that include pyraclostrobin as an active substance in their formulation.
• Distributors and marketers of plant protection products containing pyraclostrobin in the European and Spanish market.
• Farmers and agricultural operations that use fungicides with pyraclostrobin to protect their crops.
• Agricultural and plant protection technical advisors who recommend or prescribe the use of these products.
• National competent authorities responsible for authorizing plant protection products, which must review and update current national authorizations.

Practical example

A Spanish fungicide manufacturing company has in its catalog a product formulated with pyraclostrobin, authorized in Spain under the conditions of the previous approval. Following the publication of Regulation 2026/1976, the company must:

1. Consult the full text of the regulation to identify whether the new approval conditions for pyraclostrobin differ from the previous ones (for example, restrictions on maximum doses, authorized crops or application periods).
2. Compare the new conditions with those listed in its current national authorization.
3. If there are discrepancies, initiate the process of updating the national authorization with the Plant Protection Products Register of MAPA before the deadline set by the regulation expires.

A farmer using that same product must verify, through their distributor or technical advisor, that the product remains authorized for the crop and conditions in which they apply it. If the product no longer meets the requirements under the new conditions, they will need to find an authorized alternative to avoid certification problems with their production.

What should companies do now?

1. Read the full text of Regulation 2026/1976 to identify exactly what new or stricter conditions apply to pyraclostrobin.
2. Compare the new conditions with current national authorizations of each product containing pyraclostrobin. This review is mandatory for manufacturers and distributors.
3. Initiate the process of updating national authorizations if the new conditions differ from the current ones. Manufacturers must contact the competent authority of each Member State where they market their products.
4. Update labels, technical sheets and documentation of affected products to reflect the new approved use conditions.
5. Inform farmers and distributors of any changes in use conditions, doses or authorized crops for products containing pyraclostrobin.
6. Verify stock in circulation: distributors must check that stored and sold products comply with the new conditions before continuing to market them.

Official source

Consult full regulation at official source

Notice: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, consult a qualified professional. Source: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/./legal-content/AUTO/?uri=OJ:L_202601976