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Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management
How To Find Ingredients in Pesticide Products
Beyond Pesticides offers resources below to evaluate the health and ecological effects of specific chemical exposure from ACTIVE INGREDIENTS in pesticide products, as well as regulatory information and supporting scientific documents. Because various pesticide products can contain more than one active ingredient, it is important to READ the LABEL to determine chemical components.
With 192 different active ingredients and counting, it is essential to establish the connection between the use of these chemicals and their respective hazards.
View the step-by-step guide on how to search for the active ingredient(s) in pesticide products below:
- Go to U.S. EPA's Pesticide Product and Label System and enter the product name. The generic product name may vary.
- After searching, click on the chemical ingredients tab or the link for the most recent label to find Active Ingredients.
Chemical List Label List
If one selects the chemical ingredients tab, skip to Step 4 . If not, proceed to step number 3 - To find the active ingredient(s) on the label, search for the page in the document containing the date of registration. Usually, the active ingredients section occurs within the first few pages of the label document.
- Return to the Beyond Pesticides Gateway and search for the active ingredient name in the yellow box to the right or from the list below.
Clothianidin
General Information
- Product Names:
- Chemical Class: Nitroguanidine (subgroup of nicotinoids) insecticide
- Uses: Agriculture
- Alternatives: Organic Agriculture
- Beyond Pesticides rating: Toxic
Health and Environmental Effects
- Cancer: Not documented
- Endocrine Disruption: Not documented
- Reproductive Effects: Not documented
- Neurotoxicity: Yes (39)
- Kidney/Liver Damage: Not documented
- Sensitizer/ Irritant: Not documented
- Birth/Developmental: Not documented
- Detected in Groundwater: Not documented
- Potential Leacher: Not documented
- Toxic to Birds: Yes (79)
- Toxic to Fish/Aquatic Organisms: Yes (39)
- Toxic to Bees: Yes (39)
Residential Uses as Found in the ManageSafe™ Database
Additional Information
- Regulatory Status:
- Beyond Pesticides' Neonicotinoid Comments (October 2024)
- Clothianidin Registration Review
- EPA Actions on Pollinators
- Beyond Pesticides' Non-Pollinator Neonictinoid Assesment comments (4/2018)
- Beyond Pesticides' EPA registration review bee risk assessmnet comments (7/2017)
- Clothianidin EPA Petition and Response (2012)
- EPA Factsheet (2013)
- Supporting information:
- Daily News Blog
- Pesticides and Pollinators: Chemicals Implicated in Colony
- EFSA risk assessments of three neonicotinoids – clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam
- EU Commission: Neonicotinoids
- EFSA consultation for thiamethoxam (2016)
- Poisoned Waterways (Beyond Pesticides, 2017)
- Net Loss—Economic Efficacy And Costs Of Neonicotinoid Insecticides Used As Seed Coatings: Updates From The United States And Europe (Center for Food Safety, 2016)
- Heavy Costs: Weighing the Value of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Agriculture (Center for Food Safety, 2014)
- The Xerces Society - Neonicotinoids and Bees
- Studies:
- The neonicotinoid insecticide clothianidin adversely affects immune signaling in a human cell line. Di Prisco G, Iannaccone M, Ianniello F, et al. 2017. Sci Rep. 7(1):13446.
- Effects of neonicotinoid pesticide exposure on human health: a systematic review. Cimino AM, Boyles AL, Thayer KA, Perry MJ. 2017. Environ Health Perspect. 125:155–162
- Immunosuppression in Honeybee Queens by the Neonicotinoids Thiacloprid and Clothianidin. Brandt A, Grikscheit K, Siede R, et al. 2017. Sci Rep. 7(1):4673.
- Neonicotinoid clothianidin adversely affects insect immunity and promotes replication of a viral pathogen in honey bees. Di Prisco G, Cavaliere V, Annoscia D, et al. 2013. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 110(46):18466-71
- First national-scale reconnaissance of neonicotinoid insecticides in streams across the U.S.A. Hladik, M.L. and Kolpin, D.W., 2016. Environ. Chem., v. 13, pp. 12-20.
- Pesticides are the dominant stressors for vulnerable insects in lowland streams. Liess, M., Liebmann, L., Vormeier, P., Weisner, O., Altenburger, R., Borchardt, D., Brack, W., Chatzinotas, A., Escher, B., Foit, K. and Gunold, R. Water Research, 201, p.117262.
- Neonicotinoid insecticides promote breast cancer progression via G protein-coupled estrogen receptor: In vivo, in vitro and in silico studies. Li, X., He, S., Xiao, H., He, T.T., Zhang, J.D., Luo, Z.R., Ma, J.Z., Yin, Y.L., Luo, L. and Cao, L.Y., 2022. Environment International, 170, p.107568.
- Neonicotinoids: Still present in farmland birds despite their ban. Fuentes, E., Gaffard, A., Rodrigues, A., Millet, M., Bretagnolle, V., Moreau, J. and Monceau, K., 2023. Chemosphere, 321, p.138091.
- Prevalence of neonicotinoid insecticides in paired private-well tap water and human urine samples in a region of intense agriculture overlying vulnerable aquifers in eastern Iowa. Thompson, D.A., Kolpin, D.W., Hladik, M.L., Lehmler, H.J., Meppelink, S.M., Poch, M.C., Vargo, J.D., Soupene, V.A., Irfan, N.M., Robinson, M. and Kannan, K., 2023. Chemosphere, 319, p.137904.
- Infantile Internal and External Exposure to Neonicotinoid Insecticides: A Comparison of Levels across Various Sources. Zhang, H., Wang, Y., Zhu, H., Lu, S., Wang, Y., Xue, J., Zhang, T., Kannan, K. and Sun, H., 2023. Environmental Science & Technology, 57(13), pp.5358-5367.
- Organic farming reduces pesticide load in a bird of prey. Fuentes, E. et al. (2024) Organic farming reduces pesticide load in a bird of prey, Science of The Total Environment. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969724029255.
- Comparing the effects of three neonicotinoids on embryogenesis of the South African clawed frog Xenopus laevis. Flach, H. et al. (2024) Comparing the effects of three neonicotinoids on embryogenesis of the South African clawed frog xenopus laevis, Current Research in Toxicology. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666027X24000227?via%3Dihub.
- Immunosuppression in Honeybee Queens by the Neonicotinoids Thiacloprid and Clothianidin. Brandt, A. et al. (2017) Immunosuppression in honeybee queens by the neonicotinoids Thiacloprid and Clothianidin, Scientific Reports. Available at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28680118/.
- Neonicotinoid exposure increases Varroa destructor (Mesostigmata: Varroidae) mite parasitism severity in honey bee colonies and is not mitigated by increased colony genetic diversity. Bartlett, L.J. et al. (2024) Neonicotinoid exposure increases Varroa destructor (Mesostigmata: Varroidae) mite parasitism severity in honey bee colonies and is not mitigated by increased colony genetic diversity, Journal of Insect Science. Available at: https://academic.oup.com/jinsectscience/article/24/3/20/7683866.
- A single dose of clothianidin exposure induces varying sex-specific behavioral changes in adulthood depending on the developmental stage of its administration. Kaku, K. et al. (2024) A single dose of clothianidin exposure induces varying sex-specific behavioral changes in adulthood depending on the developmental stage of its administration, The Journal of Toxicological Sciences. Available at: https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jts/49/7/49_301/_article.
- Sex-specific behavioral effects of acute exposure to the neonicotinoid clothianidin in mice. Kubo, S. et al. (2022) Sex-specific behavioral effects of acute exposure to the neonicotinoid clothianidin in mice, Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0041008X22004288?via%3Dihub.
- Unveiling bee pollen's contamination with pesticides and mycotoxins: Current analytical procedures, results and regulation. Carrera, M. et al. (2024) Unveiling bee pollen’s contamination with pesticides and mycotoxins: Current analytical procedures, results and regulation, Trends in Analytical Chemistry. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165993624004187.
- Neonicotinoid pesticides: evidence of developmental neurotoxicity from regulatory rodent studies. Sass, J.B., Donley, N. and Freese, W. (2024) Neonicotinoid pesticides: evidence of developmental neurotoxicity from regulatory rodent studies, Frontiers in Toxicology. Available at: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/toxicology/articles/10.3389/ftox.2024.1438890/full.
- Chronic neonicotinoid pesticide exposure and parasite stress differentially affects learning in honeybees and bumblebees. Piiroinen Saija and Goulson Dave 2016. Chronic neonicotinoid pesticide exposure and parasite stress differentially affects learning in honeybees and bumblebeesProc. R. Soc. B.28320160246 http://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2016.0246
- The neonicotinoid clothianidin impairs memory processing in honey bees. Léa Tison, Alexander Rößner, Susan Gerschewski, Randolf Menzel, The neonicotinoid clothianidin impairs memory processing in honey bees, Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, Volume 180, 2019, Pages 139-145, ISSN 0147-6513, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2019.05.007.
- Impact of Endocrine Disrupting Pesticide Use on Obesity: A Systematic Review. Pérez-Bermejo, M. et al. (2024) Impact of Endocrine Disrupting Pesticide Use on Obesity: A Systematic Review, Biomedicines. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9059/12/12/2677.
- Widespread Use and Frequent Detection of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Wetlands of Canada's Prairie Pothole Region. Main, A.R. et al. (2014) Widespread Use and Frequent Detection of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Wetlands of Canada’s Prairie Pothole Region, PLOS ONE. Available at: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0092821.
- Residues and Bioavailability of Neonicotinoid Pesticide in Shaanxi Agricultural Soil. Hua, L., Zhao, D., Wang, H. et al. Residues and Bioavailability of Neonicotinoid Pesticide in Shaanxi Agricultural Soil. Water Air Soil Pollut 234, 129 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-023-06159-1
- Current-use pesticides in vegetation, topsoil and water reveal contaminated landscapes of the Upper Rhine Valley, Germany. Mauser, K.M., Wolfram, J., Spaak, J.W. et al. Current-use pesticides in vegetation, topsoil and water reveal contaminated landscapes of the Upper Rhine Valley, Germany. Commun Earth Environ 6, 166 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02118-2