• (September 2007) The USEPA determined that all uses of carbofuran do not meet the standard for continued registration due to ecological and occupational risks of concern and dietary risks of concern from some crops. However, the Agency noted that import tolerances for bananas, coffee, rice, and sugarcane met the standard for acceptable dietary risk. Also, a four year phase out period was decided upon for several uses. These uses do not pose dietary risks of concern and do have benefits to growers.
• (January 2008) The USEPA issued a draft Notice of Intent to Cancel All Registrations for Pesticide Products Containing Carbofuran. The USEPA is currently evaluating scientific and benefits comments from FMC, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) Scientific Advisory Panel, and the USDA.
• (July 2008) The USEPA proposes to revoke all carbofuran crop tolerances. The USEPA is currently evaluating scientific comments from FMC, as well as several commodity and trade organizations, demonstrating that a group of crop tolerances meets the safety standard.
• (March 2009) FMC's voluntary cancellation of most carbofuran uses is approved by the USEPA. The remaining registered uses are corn, pine seedlings, potatoes, pumpkins, spinach grown for seed, and sunflowers.
• (May 2009) US EPA published a final tolerance revocation;  all crop tolerances including import tolerances are revoked as of 12/31/09.
• (June 2009) FMC filed objections and requested an administrative hearing to challenge EPA’s decision to revoke all carbofuran tolerances. FMC will look to an administrative law judge to evaluate the merits of the science.  It is FMC’s position that carbofuran has acceptable dietary risk even using EPA’s own ultra-conservative assumptions such as a 400-fold safety factor and taking into account all sources of drinking water exposure.
• FMC and three national growers groups filed a petition in November 2009 with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals challenging EPA's action to deny an Administrative Hearing.  In December 2009, the court denied a request for a stay, granted our request for expedited review, and granted the request of CropLife America and others to file amicus briefs.  Both the EPA and FMC filed briefs and the court heard oral arguments on Monday, March 22.
• On July 23, 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit today ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reinstate import tolerances for carbofuran for rice, bananas, coffee and sugar cane. Although the court did not endorse EPA's views on the safety of carbofuran, for procedural reasons it did not overturn the agency's decision to deny an administrative hearing regarding revocation of domestic tolerances. FMC Corporation, the U.S. registrant for carbofuran (Furadan), while satisfied with the reinstatement of import tolerances, has not determined if further legal action will be taken regarding the continued denial of an administrative hearing until it can conduct a careful review of the court's opinion.  In its written opinion, the court noted EPA's acknowledgment that "exposure to carbofuran in imported foods alone is safe." In light of this fact, the court ruled that EPA's decision to revoke the import tolerances for these foods was "arbitrary and capricious."
  

On July 13, 2007 the European Commission issued its decision not to include carbofuran in Annex I to Directive 91/414/EEC. A number of concerns had been identified late in the review process and consequently certain risk assessments could not be concluded. The manufacturer had submitted the additional data two years before the decision, but these were not reviewed because they were submitted after the legal deadline.

The Commission stated that the decision did not prejudice the submission of a new application for registration which the notifier did in April 2008. The new application is under review and we anticipate registration in 2010.