A Chinese brand of mosquito coil has been officially banned for possessing cancer causing compounds.
A release from the Ministry of Agriculture’s Pesticides and Toxic Chemicals Control Board (PTCCB) yesterday explained that registration of “Zenden Mosquito Coil” has been denied as the product was found to be a Class 1A carcinogen.
“The product is known to cause cancer in humans. The product also has potential to cause germ cell mutation in humans. It is also classified as a highly hazardous pesticide (HHP) and poses significant risk to human health and the environment. The human health risk from exposure to Zenden Mosquito Coil is high,” the release said.
According to PTCCB, the illegally imported Chinese mosquito coils have been an area of focus for the authority for quite some time as smugglers of these products have made little to no effort to register the products, which are suspected to be dangerous to human health and the environment.
The PTCCB began confiscating illegal mosquito coils in 2008 and to date has confiscated 4,435.08kg (4.4 tonnes) of these products; approximately, 778.80kg of those confiscated was Zenden Mosquito Coil.
However, a recent application for registration has allowed PTCCB to examine the toxicity characteristics of the products in relation to both human health and the environment and allow for more informed decision making regarding the import, distribution, sale and use of the pesticide in Guyana.
The findings following that submission have led to a denial, which prohibits import, distribution, sale and use of the mosquito coil in Guyana.
Additionally, according to the PTCCB, the registration data submitted had numerous other areas of non-compliance.
The PTCCB said mosquito coil is widely known as an efficient mosquito repellent. When a mosquito coil is burned, it noted, the insecticides evaporate with the smoke, which prevents the mosquito from entering the room. Exposure to the mosquito coil smoke poses both acute and chronic health risks, it, however, pointed out, while adding that it has spent years confiscating and disposing of these illegal “Chinese mosquito coils” through numerous enforcement exercises, while raising awareness on the illegality and possible risks to human health and environment.
The brands of mosquito coils registered for sale and use in Guyana and therefore recommended for use by the PTCCB are Fish, Protox, Baygon, Raid, Vape and BOP.
“The PTCCB is committed to continued enforcement activities targeting importers, distributers and retailers of these illegal mosquito coils. This is in keeping with the PTCCB’s mandate to eliminate the importation, sale and use of illegal pesticides while reducing the availability of these unwanted products,” it added.
