Authorisation for plant protection product containing flufenacet suspended

In a decision dated 13 February 2020, the Administrative Court granted an application to restore the suspensive effect of an environmental organisation that had lodged an objection and court action against the authorisation for a plant protection product containing Flufenacet.

The plant protection product was authorised by the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL). The environmental organisation lodged an objection against this within the procedural deadline. The BVL ordered immediate enforcement, which meant that the suspensive effect of the appeal no longer applied and the authorisation remained in force for the time being.

Following an application by the environmental organisation for an injuction the Administrative Court restored the suspensive effect with its decision. The plant protection product in question may no longer be placed on the market and used with immediate effect. There are no grace periods.

The court justified its decision by stating that, following the necessary summary examination in this preliminary procedure, the authorisation for the plant protection product containing flufenacet was unlawful at the relevant time of the decision. The conditions for authorisation were not met.

This is because new findings on the active substance had become known in the meantime following the granting of the authorisation and the objection by the environmental organisation, in particular that it has endocrine-disrupting properties (according to the EFSA Conclusion published in September). The court find that this rules out the approval of the active substance and therefore also the authorisation for a plant protection product. The findings should also be taken into account on the basis of the ECJ decision of 25 April 2024.

The fact that these were new findings from a time after the authorisation was granted could not change the judges' consideration. The Administrative Court states that the factual and legal situation at the time of the last administrative decision is decisive for the decision on the legality of the authorisation. As the BVL has not yet ruled on the environmental organisation's objection, the latest findings on the active substance will have to be taken into account.

The judgement of the Administrative Court is not yet legally binding. An appeal may be lodged with the Higher Administrative Court of Lower Saxony in Lüneburg.