Selling insect repellents and pest control online: EPA numbers and the claims that need them

A citronella candle, a mesh bag of cedar balls, a spray that "kills germs": each one can be a pesticide under US law, because of what its listing says it does. A product that claims, even indirectly, to prevent, destroy, repel or mitigate a pest needs EPA registration or a valid exemption, and the word "pest" covers far more than insects: mould, bacteria, viruses and animals count too.

This is one of the categories where marketplaces act fastest, so it pays to get the words right before you list. This page covers when a product needs registration, the words pesticide labels may never use, and what Amazon, Walmart, eBay, Canada and the EU ask.

What this page covers: insect and tick repellents, flea and tick treatments, pest traps and baits, weed killers, and any product claiming to kill or repel germs, mould or pests.

The short version

• A claim to repel, kill or control any pest makes a product a pesticide, which needs EPA registration or an exemption.
• Never call it "safe", "nonpoisonous", "harmless" or "nontoxic to humans and pets".
• Minimum risk products are exempt only when they meet every condition, including no public health claims.
• Amazon and eBay want the EPA number in a listing field, exactly as printed.
• Removing the pest words to dodge registration is treated as getting round the rules on Amazon.

When is a product a pesticide?

A product is a pesticide when its claims make it one: US law looks at the claim, not the ingredient. If the listing says, or even implies, that the product prevents, destroys, repels or mitigates a pest, it is a pesticide and needs EPA registration or a valid exemption. Pests include insects, mould, bacteria, viruses and animals. "Keeps mosquitoes away", "antibacterial" and "stops mildew" are all pest claims.

Some products are exempt as treated articles or as minimum risk pesticides, the so-called 25(b) products. The exemption holds only when the product meets every condition, and one of them is that it makes no public health claims, such as protecting against a disease carried by mosquitoes.

Which words may a pesticide listing never use?

US pesticide labelling may not call a product "safe", "nonpoisonous", "noninjurious", "harmless" or "nontoxic to humans and pets". Adding "when used as directed" does not make these words acceptable. The label also may not imply that a government agency endorses the product.

Treat your listing the same way as your label. In practice:

• Say what the product does and how to use it, never how safe it is.
• Leave out "all natural" and "organic" unless they are true and allowed: Walmart prohibits false claims such as "All organic".
• Never show a government logo or seal that suggests an endorsement.

Where does the EPA registration number go on each marketplace?

Amazon and eBay ask for the EPA number in a listing field, and Walmart asks for it on the label:

• Amazon asks for the EPA registration or establishment number in the pesticide attribute. Its notices to sellers say that taking the pest words out of a listing to avoid registration is treated as circumvention.
• eBay asks for the EPA Registration Number in the item specific, exactly as it appears on the package. Natural pesticides that are not registered are not allowed.
• Walmart prohibits products without an EPA number on the label, false claims such as "All organic", and public health claims such as preventing influenza.

Can pest control images make claims?

Yes. Pest control images make claims as well as the words do. An image of mosquitoes falling away from a spray, or a family at a picnic with a pest-free shield drawn round them, says what the words say. Show the real label with the EPA registration number readable, and scenes of the product in use without drawn effects.

What do Amazon, Walmart and eBay add for pest control products?

Amazon, Walmart and eBay each add rules for pest control products:

What do pest control products need in Canada?

Pest control products sold in Canada need a PCP registration number under the Pest Control Products Act.

What must an EU biocide advert say?

In the EU, repellents and disinfectants are biocides, and their adverts must carry the sentence "Use biocides safely. Always read the label and product information before use." and may not say "low-risk", "non-toxic", "harmless", "natural", "environmentally friendly" or "animal friendly".

How Commicorn helps

• Keywords checked against the bans. The keyword step keeps out a keyword a marketplace bars on a pesticide listing, such as "safe" or "non toxic" beside a pest word, and says why.
• Your label, as printed. On the Untouched product route your photo's pixels are never redrawn, so the registration number and directions on your label stay exactly as printed.
• One thing to add yourself. Type the EPA number from your label into Amazon's pesticide attribute and eBay's item specific when you upload: our export does not hold that field yet.

Questions sellers ask

Does a citronella candle need EPA registration?

It can. A product that claims, even indirectly, to repel a pest needs EPA registration or a valid exemption, such as the minimum risk exemption for a product that meets every condition.

What is a 25(b) minimum risk pesticide?

A pesticide exempt from EPA registration because it meets every condition of the minimum risk exemption, one of which is that it makes no public health claims.

Can I call my insect repellent safe for pets?

No. US pesticide labelling may not call a product "safe", "harmless" or "nontoxic to humans and pets", and adding "when used as directed" does not make those words acceptable.

Where does the EPA number go on Amazon?

In the pesticide attribute, as the EPA registration or establishment number.

Can I take the pest words out of a listing to avoid registration?

No. Amazon's notices to sellers say that taking the pest words out of a listing to avoid registration is treated as circumvention.

Before you list

Have the EPA registration number from your label, typed exactly as printed, and a readable photo of that label ready before the listing goes live, along with a PCP registration number for Canada. On a borderline product, two things settle it: whether any word or image claims to repel, kill or control a pest, which under EPA rules makes it a pesticide, and whether it meets every condition of the minimum risk exemption, both linked below.