Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management
Back to the Gateway
Metolachlor
General Information
- Product Names:
Dual Magnum (Syngenta)
Pennant Magnum (Syngenta)
Boundary (Syngenta) formulated with Metribuzin
Camix (Syngenta) formulated with Mestorione
Lumax (Syngenta) formulated with Atrazine, and Mesotrione
Sequence (Syngenta) formulated with Glyphosate
Prefix (Syngenta) formulated with Fomesafen Sodium
Cinch (Du Pont)
Charger (Winfield)
- Chemical Class: Chloroacetanilide herbicide
- Uses: Control of grass and grasslike weeds and broadleaf weeds on terrestrial food crops: cabbage, pepper, radish and stone fruits; terrestrial food and feed crops: corn, cotton, legume vegetables, peanuts, peas, potato, safflower, sorghum, soybeans, treenuts, alfalfa (feed only); terrestrial non-food crops and outdoor residential: Rights-of-Way, golf courses, recreational areas and lawns, nonbearing fruits, ornamental and/or shade trees, ornamental plants and flowers, residential lawns; forest trees.
- Alternatives: Organic agriculture
- Beyond Pesticides rating:
Health and Environmental Effects
- Cancer: Possible ()
- Endocrine Disruption: Suspected ()
- Reproductive Effects: Yes ()
- Neurotoxicity: Not documented
- Kidney/Liver Damage: Yes ()
- Sensitizer/ Irritant: Yes ()
- Birth/Developmental: Not documented
- Detected in Groundwater: Frequently ()
- Potential Leacher: Not documented
- Toxic to Birds: Not documented
- Toxic to Fish/Aquatic Organisms: Yes ()
- Toxic to Bees: Not documented
Additional Information
- Regulatory Status:
- Supporting information:
- Studies:
- Assessment of genetic effects and pesticide exposure of farmers in NW Greece. Moshou, H., Karakitsou, A., Yfanti, F., Hela, D., Vlastos, D., Paschalidou, A.K., Kassomenos, P. and Petrou, I., 2020. Environmental Research, p.109558.
- Cancer incidence among pesticide applicators exposed to metolachlor in the Agricultural Health Study. Rusiecki, J.A., et al. 2006. Int J Cancer 118(12):3118-3123.
- Direct pesticide exposure of insects in nature conservation areas in Germany. Brühl, C.A., Bakanov, N., Köthe, S., Eichler, L., Sorg, M., Hörren, T., Mühlethaler, R., Meinel, G. and Lehmann, G.U. Scientific reports, 11(1), pp.1-10.
- Exposure to pesticides, persistent and non − persistent pollutants in French 3.5-year-old children: Findings from comprehensive hair analysis in the ELFE national birth cohort. Macheka, L. et al. (2024) Exposure to pesticides, persistent and non − persistent pollutants in French 3.5-year-old children: Findings from comprehensive hair analysis in the ELFE national birth cohort, Environment International. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412024004677.
- Estimating the aquatic risk from exposure to up to twenty-two pesticide active ingredients in waterways discharging to the Great Barrier Reef. Warne, M. et al. (2023) Estimating the aquatic risk from exposure to up to twenty-two pesticide active ingredients in waterways discharging to the Great Barrier Reef, Science of The Total Environment. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969723032552.
- The influence of polyethylene microplastics on pesticide residue and degradation in the aquatic environment. Wang, F., Gao, J., Zhai, W., Liu, D., Zhou, Z., & Wang, P. (2020). The influence of polyethylene microplastics on pesticide residue and degradation in the aquatic environment. Journal of hazardous materials, 394, 122517. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.122517
- A cocktail of contaminants: how mixtures of pesticides at low concentrations affect aquatic communities. Relyea R. A. (2009). A cocktail of contaminants: how mixtures of pesticides at low concentrations affect aquatic communities. Oecologia, 159(2), 363–376. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-008-1213-9
- Currently used and legacy pesticides in the marine atmosphere from Patagonia to Europe. Debler, F., Gandrass, J., Paul Ramacher, M. O., Koenig, A. M., Zimmermann, S., & Joerss, H. (2025). Currently used and legacy pesticides in the marine atmosphere from Patagonia to Europe. Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987), 373, 126175. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126175
.png)
