Belgian authorities have removed the use of two cypermethrin-based insecticides on tomatoes grown under protection with immediate effect. The restriction applies to APHICAR 100 EW and SHERPA 100 EW, according to a 14 October 2026 notice from the federal government’s Fytoweb service.
The regulator said the immediate change is intended to prevent exceedances of new maximum residue limits. Greenhouse tomato operators therefore cannot rely on the longer withdrawal timetable that applies to the products’ other remaining authorised uses.
Immediate restriction for protected tomatoes
Both products contain 100 g/l of the active ingredient cypermethrin. APHICAR 100 EW carries Belgian authorisation number 11251P/B; SHERPA 100 EW is registered as 11002P/B. The regulator is withdrawing their authorisations following an unfavourable assessment of the renewal applications.
Fytoweb removed two specific uses without a phase-out period: tomatoes grown under protection and outdoor grapevines intended for wine production. The notice explicitly asks users to comply at once, including where product labels already in circulation have not yet been updated. The restriction concerns these named products and crop uses; it should not be read as a blanket statement about every cypermethrin formulation or every Belgian crop.
Other uses follow a separate withdrawal timetable
For uses not removed immediately, the official notice provides a staged run-down. The authorisation holder may continue marketing and storing the products through 19 November 2026. Third parties may market and store existing stock through 19 May 2027. Permitted use under the general withdrawal arrangement can continue through 19 May 2028, the stated withdrawal date.
These dates do not extend permission to use APHICAR 100 EW or SHERPA 100 EW on protected tomatoes. That distinction matters for growers managing older chemical stocks, treatment schedules and procurement documentation.
What growers need to check
For protected-tomato businesses, the operational issue is immediate authorisation compliance rather than a future product availability deadline. Treatment programmes and remaining stocks should be reviewed against the current Belgian register and the newly restricted uses. An unchanged printed label is not evidence that the former tomato use remains authorised.
Fytoweb does not designate replacement insecticides. Growers must check current authorisations and crop-specific conditions rather than assume another formulation has equivalent permission.
Key takeaways
- Immediate: APHICAR 100 EW and SHERPA 100 EW may no longer be used on tomatoes grown under protection in Belgium.
- Separate deadlines: marketing, storage and use of the two products for other remaining authorised purposes have different wind-down dates through May 2028.
- Compliance: the regulator instructs users to follow the new restriction even before existing product labels are revised.
