Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission
16.10.2001
The Commission is not aware of the practice of spraying potato chips and crisps with chlorpropham. In any case such a practice is prohibited under Community law, as chlorpropham is not a permitted food additive (framework Council Directive 89/107/EEC of 21 December 1988 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States concerning food additives authorized for use in foodstuffs intended for human consumption[1]).
However, among the chlorpropham uses as a plant growth regulator and herbicide authorised in the Member States, an important one is the post-harvest treatment of potatoes in storage to suppress sprouting. The safety of chlorpropham use is currently being evaluated at Community level in the framework of Council Directive 91/414/EEC of 15 July 1991 on the placing of plant protection products on the market[2]. The data evaluated were not sufficient to demonstrate one way or the other whether the use of chlorpropham satisfied the requirements of the directive and Commission Decision 2001/134/EC of 14 February 2001 concerning the decision on the possible inclusion of certain active substances into Annex I to Council Directive 91/414/EEC[3] set a deadline of 31 December 2001 for the provision of the specified additional data necessary to establish whether chlorpropham use is sufficiently safe to satisfy the requirements of the directive.
OJ C 115 E, 16/05/2002