Are these products safe on food crops and around children?

The short answer

Used as directed, on the crops the label covers, and observing the stated pre-harvest interval - yes. Low residue is not the same as no residue, and the interval on the label is the number that governs, not a general impression that a material is gentle.

Why the interval exists

A pre-harvest interval is the minimum time between the last application and harvest, set so residues fall below the applicable limit by the time the crop is eaten. It is a function of how fast that active degrades on that crop under normal conditions.

A re-entry interval is a different number answering a different question: how long before a person may enter the treated area. A product can have a zero-hour re-entry interval and still have a pre-harvest interval. Do not read one as the other.

What exposure looks like

For a household, the realistic exposures are a child entering a treated area before it has dried, and a child reaching stored concentrate. For produce, it is harvesting inside the pre-harvest interval, and washing that removes less than assumed.

Concentrate is the hazard that matters most in a domestic setting. Diluted spray at label rate and undiluted concentrate are not the same material.

What to do

Keep children and pets out until treated surfaces are dry and the area has ventilated. Observe the pre-harvest interval on the label for your crop and market. Store concentrate closed, labelled, and out of reach - not decanted into an unlabelled container.

Where you grow for sale, check the residue limit that applies in your market, which may be stricter than the one where the product was registered.

When to get advice

If a child ingests concentrate or diluted spray, call the emergency number on the product label, or your national poison centre. For questions about intervals in a specific crop or market, ask a Vegalab agronomist or your local extension service.

Which compounds are rated, and how

Ratings come from the compound records, so the same vocabulary appears here and on each compound page.