Dow Chemical Company introduced the pesticide chlorpyrifos in 1965. The neurotoxic organophosphate insecticide continues to be sprayed on food crops throughout the country. Research, however, has shown a potential link between the pesticide and neurodevelopmental harm in children as well as Parkinson’s disease in adults. The potential danger has led more than 40 countries around the world to ban chlorpyrifos.
According to the 2024 Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Consolidated List of Bans, chlorpyrifos has been banned in at least 44 countries. While some nations have imposed a complete ban, others have imposed specific or limited bans on the insecticide, including its use on agricultural crops, food, or in residential settings.
The International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN) noted that chlorpyrifos is a “highly hazardous pesticide,” banned in multiple countries around the globe. It has been linked with potential brain damage and may affect the intellectual development of children. IPEN is a non-profit network of public interest organizations dedicated to bringing public awareness to dangerous substances.
On December 6, 2019, member states at the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (PAFF Committee) voted not to renew the approvals of chlorpyrifos and chlorpyrifos-methyl. As a result of the vote, the European Commission formally adopted the regulations on January 10, 2020.
Ultimately, member states were required to withdraw authorizations of products containing the substances, leading to an effective ban on the chemical. Experts noted human health concerns, including the possible link to “genotoxicity and developmental neurotoxicity.” It was assessed that no safe level of exposure could be established.
In May 2025, chlorpyrifos was added to Annex A of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Annex A requires nations that have signed on to help eliminate the production and use of the listed chemicals, including chlorpyrifos.
In 2016, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), announced it would withdraw approval of chlorpyrifos products beginning April 1, 2016. The ban would be all-encompassing, except in the use of drench treatment when applied via automated gantry sprayer to protect seedling brassica. The ban would predate the European Union ban by almost four years.
According to PAN International, the pesticide chlorpyrifos has been banned in several Latin American countries.
Latin American countries where chlorpyrifos has been banned:
Latin America has historically been a major market for chlorpyrifos use, but many countries have recently imposed bans, highlighting the growing consensus that the insecticide may pose significant risks to humans and the environment.
Several countries throughout Asia and the Pacific have implemented complete bans on the use of products containing chlorpyrifos.
Countries in Asia and the Pacific that have banned the use of chlorpyrifos:
Despite progress in Asia and the Pacific, chlorpyrifos remains legal in many countries, including India, where it is still approved for use on 18 crops despite a 2020 draft bill that would have banned the substance.
Around the world, countries have taken steps to ban or restrict the use of chlorpyrifos as growing evidence shows that the pesticide may be linked to adverse health effects.
Notable bans and restrictions on chlorpyrifos:
Additional countries that have issued a ban include Canada, Egypt, Indonesia, Morocco, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Vietnam. This, however, is not an exhaustive list as new restrictions and bans continue to be imposed as the Stockholm Convention listing takes effect.
The regulatory status of chlorpyrifos in the United States contrasts with other parts of the world. In 2021, the EPA revoked food tolerances for chlorpyrifos (effective February 2022), but the 8th Circuit Court vacated the decision in 2023, reinstating chlorpyrifos tolerances for registered food crops.
It is worth noting, however, that Corteva Agriscience, one of the largest producers of chlorpyrifos in the US, announced in February 2020 that it would phase out production of the pesticide by the end of the year.
Gharda Chemicals remains one of the few manufacturers left still supplying chlorpyrifos to the US market.
In the absence of clear federal regulatory action, several states have issued restrictions or bans on the use of chlorpyrifos. As reported by the Environmental Working Group, states like California (banned 2020), Hawaii (first state ban 2018), Maine, and Maryland have either enacted bans or announced legislation to prohibit the pesticide.
In October 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that his administration had reached a deal with manufacturers of the pesticide to prohibit the sale of chlorpyrifos in the state. Manufacturers were given until the end of 2020 to use any remaining stock before the full ban went into effect.
In June 2018, Hawaii became the first state to issue a ban on chlorpyrifos, citing the potential harm to children.
On June 8, 2021, Maine banned the distribution of pesticides containing chlorpyrifos as an active ingredient. The ban took effect in 2022.
Maryland announced in February 2020 that it would be requiring the phase-out of chlorpyrifos by the end of that year.
In December 2019, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo issued an executive directive ordering the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to phase out chlorpyrifos in New York. The DEC subsequently finalized regulations prohibiting the sale, distribution, possession, and use of chlorpyrifos products, which went into full effect in July of 2021.
Oregon began phasing out the use of chlorpyrifos in 2021, but a ban with a few limited exceptions, did not take effect until 2024.
It is important to understand that residents living in a state with a ban may still be exposed to the chemical through contaminated food and crops in states where use of the chemical remains legal.
While various countries around the world have banned chlorpyrifos, many people remain unaware of the potential consequences that come with exposure. Individuals who were exposed to chlorpyrifos and subsequently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease are encouraged to contact an attorney as soon as possible. Wisner Baum offers free and confidential case evaluations for chlorpyrifos lawsuits. Contact us today at (310) 207-3233 to discuss your potential legal options.
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In May of 2019, the jury in the case of Pilliod et al. v, Monsanto Company ordered the agrochemical giant to pay $2.055 billion in damages to the plaintiffs, Alva and Alberta Pilliod, a Bay Area couple in their 70s. R. Brent Wisner served as co-lead trial attorney for the Pilliods, delivering the opening and closing statements and cross-examining several of Monsanto’s experts. Wisner Baum managing shareholder, Michael Baum and attorney Pedram Esfandiary also served on the trial team in the Pilliod case.
The judge later reduced their award to $87M. Monsanto appealed the Pilliod’s verdict which the California Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District denied on August 9, 2021. Monsanto then requested the California Supreme Court review the appeal’s court decision, which the court denied on Nov. 17, 2021. Monsanto (Bayer) then submitted a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court which SCOTUS denied on June 27, 2022, allowing the final judgment of $87M to remain intact.
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Wisner Baum co-represented Dewayne “Lee” Johnson in the first Roundup cancer lawsuit to proceed to trial. On Aug. 10, 2018, a San Francisco jury ordered Monsanto to pay $39.25 million in compensatory damages and $250 million in punitive damages to Mr. Johnson, a former groundskeeper who alleged exposure to Monsanto’s herbicides caused him to develop terminal non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Months after the jury verdict, the judge overseeing the trial reduced the punitive damages to $39.25 million. Mr. Johnson decided to accept the remittitur, bringing the adjusted amount awarded to Mr. Johnson $78.5 million.
Monsanto (Bayer) appealed the verdict and Johnson cross appealed. On July 20, 2020, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the verdict against Monsanto but reduced Mr. Johnson’s award to $20.5 million. The company chose not to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, ending the litigation.
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No. The EPA revoked all food tolerances for chlorpyrifos in 2021 after its own science concluded there is no safe level of exposure, particularly for children and developing fetuses. However, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated that ban in 2023, ruling on procedural grounds rather than disputing the underlying science. The ruling reinstated all tolerances, allowing chlorpyrifos use to resume on food crops.
In 2024, the EPA proposed a new rule to revoke tolerances on most crops while preserving use on 11 high-volume crops, including apples, citrus, strawberries, and wheat. That rule has not been finalized.
In the absence of a federal ban, several states have enacted their own restrictions. California, most notably, banned all agricultural use of chlorpyrifos in 2020, and Hawaii has similarly prohibited its use.
Chlorpyrifos was added to Annex A of the Stockholm Convention in 2025, with some exemptions. This means that member states must eliminate the use of the pesticide within a specific time.
Yes. Chlorpyrifos remains a federally registered pesticide for use on at least 11 crops: alfalfa, apples, asparagus, tart cherries, citrus, cotton, peaches, soybeans, strawberries, sugar beets, and spring and winter wheat. These are, coincidentally, among the most widely grown and consumed crops in the U.S. today.
Chlorpyrifos is banned in around 44 countries across the globe. The pesticide, however, remains legal in the US.
