Stewardship requirements for copper usage authorisation
Stewardship requirements for use of the copper hydroxide product, Funguran Progress, on organic potato crops
This communication will only affect you if you have used copper on potato crops this year.
In December 2019, after pressure from the organic potato sector, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) submitted an application for emergency authorisation of Funguran Progress to control late blight in organic potato crops. The approval for use was issued on 10th July 2020. Use is only authorised in England, as the ministries in the devolved nations of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland did not approve authorisation for their regions.
The approval notice stipulates stewardship requirements to ensure:
- Organic potato crops treated with ‘Funguran Progress,’ and waste or products from those crops, must not be used for animal feed
- Organic potatoes treated with the product, or any commodity produced using these treated crops, must not be exported to EU Member States
To help ensure these restrictions along supply chains, sales documents for potatoes treated with copper will need to include wording to indicate that they cannot be exported or used for animal feed.
To demonstrate that the export and animal feed restrictions have been implemented correctly, the following stewardship arrangements are required:
- Record-keeping of the use of Funguran Progress, and any other copper containing product use by growers, including where the product was used
- Traceability of treated organic potatoes, products and any commodity produced using these treated crops along the supply chain
- Evidence that none of the treated potatoes or products from those potatoes have been fed to livestock
The Chemicals Regulation Division (CRD) of the Health and Safety Executive - who have responsibility for the regulation of pesticides - have stipulated that stewardship records must be maintained and made available to them on request, and at the point of any subsequent application, for the emergency use of Funguran Progress.
Any future emergency authorisations will depend on demonstrating that the stewardship requirements have been met this year, so it's important that they are carried out correctly.
We will collate records regarding the use of Funguran Progress on farms certified by Soil Association Certification for HSE.
This year, in order to meet the requirement to submit data before the end of November 2020, you will need to send details of your use of copper to us as soon as possible after the Wednesday 30th September (when the authorisation ends), and at least by the middle of November, to enable us to collate the information and pass it on to HSE.
Please complete the form below and return it with the information required to Senior Technical Manager, Sarah Hathway.
We'll also need to see an example of your sales documentation that includes the text stating that the potatoes must not be exported or used as animals feed.
If you have any queries about this, please contact your Certification Officer.
Download the form >