Fenthion

Fenthion (O,O-dimethyl O-4-methylthio-m-tolylphosphorothioate ) is a broad spectrum organophosphorus (OP) insecticide. Fenthion is used to control pest insects in agricultural, commercial and domestic situations. Fenthion is also used to control non-native pest birds in and around buildings.

The review of fenthion has been split into two parts:

• Part 1 is considering the active constituent fenthion and products that are used in non-food producing situations
• Part 2 is considering the products used on food-producing plants and animals.

Currently, only the findings for Part 1 are available. A Preliminary Review Findings (PRF) report for Part 2 will be released after the initial assessment is completed.

In 1994 the APVMA (formerly the NRA) began a review of fenthion as part of the former Existing Chemical Review Program. Fenthion was nominated for review because of concerns about public health, occupational health and safety, the environment and food residues.

Fenthion review—Part 1

Status: review in progress

In December 2005 the APVMA released the Fenthion Preliminary Review Findings Report: Part 1. APVMA’s preliminary findings were that safety information on product labels was inadequate, and that there was a potential health risk from some application methods and from concentrated home garden products. The APVMA also found that the use of fenthion bird control products posed a potential risk to non-target birds.

To reduce the risk to users and the environment the APVMA proposed cancelling a home garden product and varying the labels of other products used in non-food producing situations. Read a full history of the review...

Fenthion review—Part 2

Status: review in progress - updated 22 August 2008

The APVMA’s review of fenthion part 2 is currently in the assessment stage.  In association with its expert advisory agency the Office of Chemical Safety, the APVMA is considering data and information submitted to the review.  This stage can take some time to finalise because of the amount of data to be assessed and the requirement to wait for additional data to be provided for assessment.  The APVMA is waiting for additional residue data from trials being undertaken by a number of industry groups.  The APVMA does not anticipate receiving the study results until September 2009.  Once the results are received the assessments will be completed. 

After all the assessments have been completed the APVMA will release a Preliminary Review Findings report (PRF) which will outline the review findings and the proposed regulatory action to be taken for each registered use.  When proposing regulatory action and making decisions, the APVMA considers every use which appears on the label. The public, industry and interested parties will be given the opportunity to comment on the proposed regulatory actions listed in the PRF.  The APVMA will consider these comments when making the final decisions for the fenthion review (part 2).  The PRF is unlikely to be available until the end of 2009.  When the PRF is released or if current assessments find that action is required before the release of the report, the APVMA will widely publish this information.  The release of any information will be made on the APVMA website.

The APVMA will issue a final report once the assessment of all available data is completed.

For more information please contact the Chemical Review Program on (02) 6210 4749 or by email to chemrev@apvma.gov.au

Review report	Date
Preliminary Review Findings Report – Part 1: Uses of fenthion in non-food-producing situations: Volume 1: Review Summary ( PDF - 544KB) Volume 2: Technical Reports ( PDF - 2.7MB)	Dec 2005

Product search

Search the PUBCRIS database for registered products that contain fenthion.
Note: In the Active Constituent 1 field enter fenthion.

APVMA fenthion archive

Title	Date
Fenthion FAQ	Dec 2005
Gazette Notice: Chemicals for review in the third cycle – call for information	Apr 1998