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Hawaii company fined $8,800 for selling unregistered pesticides

Release Date: 9/19/2005
Contact Information: Dean Higuchi, (808) 541-2711

HONOLULU - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently fined ABC Corporation of Waipahu, HI, $8,800 for violations of federal pesticide regulations.

The EPA cited ABC Corporation for selling and distributing two unregistered pesticides. Inspectors from the Hawai'i Department of Agriculture found the company sold Aqua-Staph and Staph-Guard marked as fabric softeners, but both product names and labels made pesticidal claims.

"Companies need to remember that all products that claim to act as pesticides need to be registered with the EPA," said Enrique Manzanilla, director of the EPA's Communities and Ecosystems Division. "Without the required registration, we have no information on the effects of these products, which could lead to harm to public health and the environment."

Federal law requires that before selling or distributing a pesticide in the United States, companies must register the pesticide with the EPA. Pesticides that have been registered with the agency will have an EPA registration number on the label. Each producer, seller, and distributor has certain obligations to ensure that the pesticide being produced, distributed, or sold is properly registered and labeled.

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