Appendix 4.B Compounds to be used with CAUTION (updated September 2025)

(limited lifetime, restricted markets, etc.)

These AI:

have permitted MRLs in some markets, but not others and/or…
may have have registration in at least one major cocoa growing country
may have temporary (tMRL^s) or strong possibility of phasing-out within coming years, but…
have shown demonstrable efficacy in at least one regional cocoa growing country
do not belong to WHO/EPA toxicity Class I

(i) diseases

Active ingredients	MoA group	EU status	EU MRL	JP MRL
chlorothalonil δ	M5	N	0.05	0.05

(ii) insects

Active ingredients	MoA group	EU status	EU MRL	JP MRL
fenobucarb (BPMC)	1A	N *ø	(0.01)	0.02
MIPC, isoprocarb	1A	N *ø	(0.01)	0.02
diazinon	1B	N	0.05
dimethoate	1B	N	0.05	0.01
fenitrothion	1B	N *	0.05
chlorpyrifos (ethyl) β	1B	N	0.01	0.01
bifenthrin	3	N	0.05	0.1§
beta-cyfluthrin β,T	3	N	0.05	0.1
clothianidin χ	4A	N	0.02	0.02§
imidacloprid	4A	N	0.05	0.05§
thiamethoxam	4A	N	0.02	0.02§
thiacloprid	4A ξ	N	0.05
novaluron π	15	N	(0.05)	(0.01)
pymetrozine	9B	N	0.1
teflubenzuron π	15	N	0.05	0.02
Useful especially for termite control
fipronil Y, β	2	N	0.005 Y	0.01

(iii) weeds

Active ingredients	MoA group	EU status	EU MRL	JP MRL
2,4-D dimethylamine salt	O	Y *	0.1	0.01
picloram	O	Y	0.01 (T)	(0.01)
paraquat, diquat δ	D	N	0.05 (T)	0.05

(iv) stored produce etc.

Fumigants ***	MoA group	EU status	EU MRL	JP MRL
methyl bromide μ	8A	N	0.01	& US:
(as inorganic bromide ion)			70.0	50.0
Rodenticides ***	(anti-coagulant – see text)
brodifacoum,	3	N	(0.01)	(0.01)
bromadiolone, difenacoum	8A	N	(0.01)	(0.01)
warfarin (coumaphene)	24	N	(0.01)	(0.01)

Key
*	High residue levels have been found in imported produce to the EU and/or Japan (**: >10 cases since 2008)
***	High mammalian toxicity: to be used only by qualified personnel
§	Now to be tested in Japan after removal of shell (testa); Japan MRLs in brackets assumed to be at default.
M	Current moratorium on use in the EU due to suspected bee toxicity
α	No MRL given in Japan and copper is exempt in the USA
µ	Metalaxyl includes mixtures of all constituent isomers including metalaxyl-M (sum of isomers)
β	Registered (widely used) for cocoa pod borer control in Indonesia
ξ	Cyano-substituted neo-nicotinoid
δ	Includes deltamethrin and tralomethrin (as total)
π	Usually sold as a mixture (co-formulated with a pyrethroid)
σ	Mostly for stump treatments in CSSVD eradication

β	Chlorpyrifos is banned in Europe and persistent enough to present significant residue risk. Registered for cocoa pod borer control in C. d’Ivoire and Indonesia.
T	Toxicity of AI in class 1b, but still registered in some jurisdictions
Y	Fipronil (sum fipronil + metabolites). Five degradation products are known, depending on the mode of break-down: fipronilsulfone, fipronil-sulfide, fipronil-desulfinyl, fipronil-amide, and fipronil-detrifluo-romethyl-sulfinyl. Fipronil is not permitted for use as spraying in the EU or USA and has generally permitted only for targeted applications such as baiting, in-furrow and seed treatments; however, it has been registered for spraying CPB (above) and mirids in 2 African countries.
ε	Use of pirimiphos methyl in cocoa is no longer defended by Syngenta; zero tolerance (i.e. LOD) for this AI in Australia.
δ	US MRL of 0.05
χ	Clothianidin appears to have had little use in cocoa to date, but for residue analysis note: Naeun et al (2003) [1]
μ	Restricted under the Montreal Protocol; to be phased out by EPA (mostly by 2017)
π	Usually sold as a mixture (co-formulated with a pyrethroid)
ø	P pesticides are used outside the EU but for which no toxicological data and no MRLs have been notified for inclusion in 396/2005/EC Annex III (neither by the member states, in the form of import tolerances, nor by third countries). Such compounds may have a clear purpose outside Europe (e.g. fenobucarb: which is widely used for control of hemipteran pests of rice in Asia, and has also been applied to cocoa in certain countries).