Laboratory for formulation chemistry
The BVL maintains the laboratory for formulation chemistry (Unit 214) at the Braunschweig site, where plant protection products are tested for their composition and their physical, chemical and technical properties. Since 2013, the laboratory has been accredited according to DIN EN ISO/IEC 17025 standard by the German Accreditation Body (DAkkS), whereby the accreditation is valid for the scope of accreditation listed in the annex to the certificate (registration number: D-PL-17682-01-00). This currently includes all quantitative methods based on GC/FID, GC/MS, headspace GC/MS, HPLC/UV and LC/MS. In addition, more than half of the methods for testing physical, chemical and technical properties of plant protection products that are relevant for assessing the marketability of plant protection products according to the EU reference document mentioned below are included (list of testing methods).
The laboratory is active in various fields of work:
- Plant protection product samples taken by the plant protection services of the federal states as part of market inspections are analysed. Inspections include trade as well as import, transport, production and repackaging or packaging of plant protection products. This involves checking whether the goods comply with the requirements laid down in the authorisation procedure or the approval procedure for parallel-traded plant protection products. The approach to assessing the identity of plant protection products from market control is published in the EU reference document “Reference document illustrating best practices on analytical strategies and interpretation of results for the formulation analysis of plant protection products obtained during official market control” of the Commission Working Group „Working Group on Plant Protection Product Formulation Analysis“. This also contains, in essence, the specifications of Vinke's publication (2014) “Assessment of examinations of plant protection products from the market monitoring sector”, (Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety), which served as the basis for assessing the marketability of plant protection products until the EU reference document was finalised and is used as a supplement with regard to some additional definitions and information if necessary.
- In the authorisation procedure, samples are requested from the applicant company in certain cases and checked in the laboratory for compliance with the defined specifications.
- In the approval procedure for parallel trade, it is also examined in individual cases whether the parallel traded plant protection product is the same as the reference product authorised in Germany.
- On behalf of courts, samples are tested for the identity and marketability of plant protection products for the purpose of preparing expert opinions.
- International programmes for the new and further development of test procedures and analysis methods are being worked on.
Due to its accreditation and its legal tasks, the laboratory for formulation chemistry is committed to impartiality and therefore cannot accept examination orders from private clients.1
In order to obtain valid test results, special attention must be paid to taking representative analysis samples from the plant protection product container to be tested. In this respect, the laboratory follows the joint publication of the DAPA and the DAPF Vinke, C. (2021) „Analysis of plant protection produchts: techniques and particularities of sampling in the laboratory“ (Journal of Consumer Protection and Food Safety, 16, pages 183–188 (2021).
Based on four analytical measurement principles (GC/FID, HPLC/UV, GC/MS, headspace GC/MS), the laboratory has developed basic methods that are supplemented and validated in the form of analyse specific annexes. This provides the laboratory with analytical methods for determining the content of more than 200 active substances, co-formulants, impurities and foreign substances.
To investigate the physical, chemical and technical properties of plant protection products, the laboratory has at its disposal the analytical methods published by CIPAC (Collaborative International Pesticides Analytical Council). Furthermore, methods of the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) are applied.
A method developed in the laboratory for screening analysis using GC/MS makes it possible to identify substances, especially in liquid plant protection products, that are not allowed to be contained according to the authorisation.
The existing analytical methods and examination procedures are continuously developed further and supplemented by new procedures. One way that happens is through national and international ring trials in which the laboratory also participates. These collaborative trials are mainly carried out within the framework of the work of DAPA, DAPF and CIPAC.
The results of the investigations carried out are summarised and published in annual reports (in German language only, here).
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1 In case of problems or abnormalities with plant protection products or their application, please contact the plant protection service responsible for you. In case of doubt, they can send samples to the laboratory for formulation chemistry for examination.