Importance of labels
The pesticide label is a legal document and penalties can be applied if the pesticide is not used according to the directions on the label. This includes the rate of application, that is, how much you put in the tank, how often you apply it, how you apply it (what sort of spray equipment) and how soon you can harvest the crop after you have used that pesticide.
You can be fined for mis-use, and if many growers are not using a pesticide properly, it may be withdrawn and you will no longer be able to use it.
The withholding period (WHP) listed on the label states how soon after spraying you can pick the crop (not sell it).
If you pick the crop too soon (earlier than the end of the withholding period) it will have residues from the pesticide that are too high for people to eat that food safely. Many retailers including Coles and Woolworths, and government departments, test food at random for residues. If they are found to be too high, you can be prosecuted.
You can also be charged for the cost of recalling your product from the shop, so it can cost you a lot of money. If chemicals are found in your product that are from pesticides that are not registered for use on strawberries, this is illegal and you may also be prosecuted, with your product withdrawn from sale.
The Food Act 2008 and its subsidiary legislation The Food Regulations 2009, has three levels of offence: ‘knowingly’, ‘ought to know’ and ‘Strict liability’ where there is no excuse for not knowing the right thing to do. The penalties range from $40 000 to $100 000 and potential imprisonment for an individual grower, or $200 000 to $500 000 for a company.
When you buy a pesticide, you agree to the legal use of that pesticide as described on the label, and therefore higher penalties may be incurred.
A guide to the use of pesticides in Western Australia covering obligations when you use pesticides, can be downloaded from www.health.wa.gov.au/publications/subject_index/p/poisons.cfm.
| Example of product name | Active ingredient | Pest or disease controlled | Withholding period (WHP) | Other conditions of use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Captan | Captan | Various fungal diseases | 1 day | No more than 5 sprays per season |
| Cropcare Captan (only) | Captan | Various fungal diseases | 1 day | No restriction on number of sprays per season but spraying more than every 14 days may violate residue limits |
| Copper | Copper | Various fungal diseases | 1 day | — |
| Teldor | Fenhexamid | Grey mould | None | No more than 2 sprays in a row |
| Rovral | Iprodione | Grey mould | 1 day | No more than 2 sprays in a row |
| Systhane | Myclobutanil | Powdery mildew | None | No more than 2 sprays in a row |
| Fontelis | Penthiopyrad | Powdery mildew | 1 day | No more than 3 sprays per season, no more than 2 applications in a row |
| Switch | Cyprodinil/ Fludioxonil | Colletotrichum, grey mould | 3 days | May be used in the same season but no more than three applications of these chemicals in total per season |
| Scala | Pyrimethanil | Grey mould | 1 day | |
| Wettable sulphur | Sulfur | Powdery mildew | None | — |
| Thiragranz | Thiram | Various fungal diseases | 7 days | — |
| Barmac Thiram (only) | Thiram | Various fungal diseases | 2 days | — |
| Flint | Trifloxystrobin | Powdery mildew | 1 day | No more than 3 sprays per season. Do not spray twice in a row |
| Zineb | Zineb | Various fungal diseases | 7 days | — |
| Abamectin | Abamectin | Two-spotted mite | 3 days | No more than 2 sprays per season |
| Lorsban | Chlorpyrifos | Crickets | None (bran bait around plants only) | — |
| Torque | Fenbutatin oxide | Two-spotted mite | 1 day | — |
| Lannate | Methomyl | Caterpillars | 3 days for fresh fruit | — |
| 10 days if fruit to be frozen | — | |||
| Gemstar | Nuclear polyhedrosis virus of Helicoverpa zea | Caterpillars | None | — |
| Pirimor | Pirimicarb | Aphids | 2 days | — |
| Success Neo | Spinetoram | Caterpillars, western flower thrips | 1 day | — |
| Dipterex | Trichlorfon | Caterpillars | 14 days | — |
| Kelthane/Masta-Mite | Dicofol or dicofol/ tetradifon | Two-spotted mite | 7 days | Not for use in IPM programs |
| Calibre | Hexythiazox | Two-spotted mite (eggs only | 1 day | One application per season only |
| Omite | Propargite | Two-spotted mite | 3 days | — |
| Permit no. | Active ingredient | Trade name | Problem | Withholding period (WHP) | Expiry date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PER12486 | Trichlorfon | Dipterex | Fruit fly | 14 days | 31-May-16 |
| PER12570 | Bifenazate | Acramite | Two-spotted mite | 1 day | 30-Jun-17 |
| PER12927 | Spinetoram | Success Neo | Fruit fly (suppression only) | 1 day | 31-May-16 |
| PER12940 | Maldison | Malathion | Fruit fly | 3 days | 30-Jun-17 |
| PER100147 | Phosphorous acid | Foli-R-Fos | Phytophthora | 6 weeks | 31-Oct-17 |
| PER13331 | Pyriproxyfen | Admiral | Greenhouse & silverleaf whitefly | 2 days | 31-Oct-15 |
| PER13542 | Maldison | Malathion | Rutherglen bug | 3 days | 30-Jun-17 |
| PER14192 | Indoxacarb | Avatar | Garden, whitefringed weevil | 2 days | 30-Sep-18 |
| PER13377 | Emamectin | Proclaim | Caterpillars | 3 days | 30-Sep-15 |
| PER14453 | Chlorantraniliprole | Coragen | Caterpillars (Heliothis spp.) | 1 day | 31-May-17 |
Additional chemicals are registered or have minor use permits for use on runner crops only in some Australian States. No runner crops are grown in Western Australia. It is illegal to use these chemicals in Western Australia. This is for information only.
| Not for use in Western Australia | |||||
| Permit no. | Active | Trade name | Problem | Other conditions of use | Expiry date |
| PER14577 | Quinoxyfen | Legend | Powdery mildew | Runner crops only | 30-Sep-19 |
| PER14483 | Pyraclostrobin | Cabrio | Colletotrichum gloeosporioides | For use in tissue culture (TC) and foundation nurseries only | 30-Sep-18 |
| PER13120 | Bitertanol | Baycor | Powdery mildew, blight, scorch | Runner crops only | 30-Nov-16 |
| PER13697 | Metalaxyl -M | Ridomil Gold 480EC | Crown rot (Phytophthora cactorum) in runner production only | Runner crops only | 30-Sep-17 |
| PER12387 | Cyprodinil / Fludioxonil | Switch | Colletotrichum crown or petiole rot | Runner crops only | 31-Oct-1 |
| PER13697 | Phosphorous acid | Phos acid | Crown rot (Phytophthora cactorum) in runner production only | Foliar spray only unless dipping bundles of runners | 30-Sep-17 |
| — | Nemacur | Fenamiphos | Nematodes | Runner crops only | — |
| — | Octave | Prochloraz | Colletotrichum | Runner crops only | — |