On September 25, with the expiration of the last batch of paraquat emulsifiable concentrate, paraquat—a product that had been used in China for more than 40 years—was officially withdrawn from the domestic market.

　　In fact, the news of a ban on paraquat has long been mired in controversy. For an extended period after the aqueous formulation of paraquat was prohibited, the emulsifiable concentrate form remained legally available on the market, and several countries abroad continue to permit its sale and use. Consequently, some industry stakeholders have maintained high expectations for a possible lifting of the ban.

　　In particular, in March this year, Hongtaiyang announced that it had achieved a breakthrough in the development of a specific antidote for paraquat and planned to inject additional investment into preclinical research and clinical trials for this antidote, with the aim of obtaining regulatory approval as soon as possible. This has also sparked speculation about the possible lifting of the ban on paraquat.

　　However, a recent notice issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs to strengthen the management of paraquat has officially brought an end to its domestic sales.

　　Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs: Paraquat products may not be sold within China.

　　On September 25, the General Office of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued the “Notice on Effectively Strengthening the Special Rectification Campaign for Paraquat.” The notice pointed out that, in recent years, the special campaign has yielded significant results; however, some regions continue to experience illegal addition of paraquat and unauthorized trading of the substance, leading to frequent paraquat poisoning incidents and resulting in adverse social repercussions.

　　In order to thoroughly implement the Regulations on the Administration of Pesticides, Ministry of Agriculture Announcements No. 1745 and No. 2445, and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Announcement No. 269, to strictly enforce regulatory measures concerning paraquat, and to continuously advance the special rectification campaign targeting paraquat, thereby safeguarding the health and safety of the public, this notice is hereby issued.

　　The notice stipulates that only manufacturers of paraquat technical grade with both a production license and registration for pesticides intended solely for export may produce paraquat products. Paraquat products manufactured by such producers may be sold exclusively for export and may not be marketed domestically. Furthermore, these manufacturers may sell paraquat only to overseas purchasing entities and are prohibited from selling it to domestic enterprises.

　　In addition to requiring paraquat technical‑grade manufacturers to submit regular reports and compile data on their production activities, the notice explicitly stipulates that any entity without a production license shall no longer be granted a pesticide registration certificate for paraquat technical grade or formulated products intended solely for export. Furthermore, entities that have obtained a production license for paraquat technical grade but no longer meet the prescribed conditions and have no intention of continuing paraquat production will have their production license revoked.

　　Meanwhile, the notice emphasizes the need to strengthen market supervision and inspection of pesticides, with a particular focus on detecting any illegal trading of paraquat‑containing products. It also calls for intensified random inspections of non‑selective herbicides such as diquat, glyphosate, and glufosinate, with special attention to whether these products have been illegally adulterated with hidden paraquat ingredients. Upon detection of such illicit practices, authorities must conduct thorough traceability investigations to promptly identify the sources of procurement and the points of origin, and resolutely crack down, in accordance with the law, on the illegal addition of concealed paraquat components.

　　Expansion: The Past and Present of Paraquat

　　Paraquat was first developed and manufactured in the United Kingdom and began to be produced and applied on a large scale in the market in the 1960s.

　　In 1984, paraquat was first introduced to China (though some sources suggest the mid-1970s). By the 1990s, annual usage in China had surged from several hundred tons to over 5,000 tons, yet imports still accounted for the majority at that time.

　　It was only with the emergence of Li Dejun, known as the “Father of Paraquat in China,” that China achieved a major breakthrough in paraquat production technology, breaking the British monopoly and becoming the second country in the world to master its manufacturing process.

　　Beginning in the 21st century, China initiated domestic production of paraquat. Its market sales grew from 7,800 tons in 2001 to 45,400 tons in 2011, and by 2013, paraquat production capacity had reached 73,000 tons.

　　In 2012, the Ministry of Agriculture (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs), in conjunction with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, issued Announcement No. 1745, stating that, effective from the date of its issuance, approval would be suspended for the registration of new active‑ingredient production facilities and formulation processing plants for paraquat; applications for new field trials, registration, and production licensing (including both production licenses and production approval documents) for paraquat active ingredients and aqueous formulations (including paraquat‑based compound aqueous formulations, hereinafter the same) would no longer be accepted; and the approval of new registrations and production licenses for paraquat active ingredients and aqueous formulations would also be halted.

　　Effective July 1, 2014, the registration and production license for paraquat aqueous formulations were revoked, and production was discontinued. Registration for the export of the technical‑grade active ingredient for use outside China was retained, with authorization to produce exclusively for export. Sales and use of the aqueous formulation within China were prohibited as of July 1, 2016.

　　On July 10, 2015, the 17th plenary session of the Eighth National Pesticide Registration Review Committee reclassified paraquat’s toxicity from “highly toxic” to “extremely toxic.” Subsequently, the state’s resolve to ban paraquat grew increasingly firm.

　　In September 2016, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued Announcement No. 2445, which once again clarified that, effective from the date of its issuance, no further applications for field trials or registration of paraquat will be accepted or approved, nor will any applications for renewal of domestic-use registration for paraquat be accepted or approved. Registration for the export‑only use of products manufactured by the active‑ingredient producer will remain in effect; such producers may, upon renewal, apply to amend their existing registration to reflect “export‑only use.”

　　On June 29, 2017, the Department of Crop Production of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, in its response to Proposal No. 3326 submitted at the Fifth Session of the 12th National People’s Congress, explicitly stated: Paraquat is a non-selective herbicide; however, due to the lack of an effective antidote, it results in a high mortality rate following poisoning, with a prolonged course of death and severe suffering for patients, leading to strong public calls for its ban. To safeguard public health and safety and to ensure the safe production and use of paraquat, in recent years the Ministry of Agriculture (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs) has successively implemented a series of measures to strengthen the management of paraquat products throughout their registration, production, marketing, and application. First, no new registrations for paraquat products will be approved. Second, a complete ban on paraquat will take effect in 2020.

　　As of that time, only one product—a 20% paraquat soluble concentrate—was available on the market, with registration number PD20131912. The pesticide registration certificate for this product was valid until September 25, 2018, and no renewal was granted upon expiration. Following September 25, 2020, no paraquat products were permitted to be sold or used in China.

　　At this point, the ban on paraquat should have been effectively concluded, and the market had already seen alternatives such as glyphosate, glufosinate, and diquat. However, the recurring cases of illegal adulteration and unauthorized use of paraquat have kept it in the public eye. In particular, the 2018 “Fish‑Killing Brother” incident further sparked widespread debate over paraquat’s safety.

　　To this end, the national agricultural authorities have continuously introduced measures and stepped up efforts to impose strict oversight on the paraquat market. Nevertheless, calls for the re‑approval of paraquat have occasionally resurfaced. Given that paraquat remains legally sold and used in more than 90 countries worldwide, and that the government’s 2017 list of authorized dealers still includes paraquat, some stakeholders continue to harbor hopes for its eventual reinstatement before a full ban is officially enforced.

　　On September 25, 2020—the very day the last batch of paraquat products reached the end of its registration period—the General Office of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs issued the “Notice on Effectively Strengthening the Special Rectification Campaign for Paraquat.” Under this directive, legally produced paraquat products in China may only be exported and are prohibited from domestic sales. With this measure, paraquat products have officially been withdrawn from the domestic market.