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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.
Imidacloprid
General Information
- Fact Sheet: Imidacloprid.pdf
- Product Names:
- Chemical Class: Chloro-nicotinyl insecticide
- Uses: Agriculture, lawns and landscapes, pet pests, gardening
- Alternatives: Organic agriculture, Organic lawn care
- Beyond Pesticides rating: Toxic
Health and Environmental Effects
- Cancer: Possible (153, 181)
- Endocrine Disruption: Likely (151, 152)
- Reproductive Effects: Yes (6, 151, 152)
- Neurotoxicity: Possible (154)
- Kidney/Liver Damage: Possible (155, 156)
- Sensitizer/ Irritant: Not documented
- Birth/Developmental: Likely (154)
- Detected in Groundwater: Not documented
- Potential Leacher: Yes (6)
- Toxic to Birds: Yes (4)
- Toxic to Fish/Aquatic Organisms: Yes (4)
- Toxic to Bees: Yes (4)
Residential Uses as Found in the ManageSafe™ Database
- Dandelions
- Tree-boring Caterpillars
- Fleas
- Grubs
- Termites
- Ants
- Chinch Bugs
- Cockroaches
- Hemlock Woolly Adelgid
- Bed Bugs
- Emerald Ash Borer
- Clover
- Thrips
- Whiteflies
- Aphids
- Fire Ants
Additional Information
- Regulatory Status:
- Beyond Pesticides' Neonicotinoid Comments (October 2024)
- Beyond Pesticides' Preliminary Neonicotioid Ecological Assessments (non-pollinator) comments (04/2018)
- Imidacloprid Registration Review (04/2018)
- Beyond Pesticides' EPA Draft Human Health Risk Assessment comments (11/2017)
- Beyond Pesticides' Aquatic Ecological Assessment comments (07/2017)
- EPA Actions on Pollinators (01/2017)
- Supporting information:
- 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
- NCAP Imidacloprid Factsheet (Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides)
- PAN Pesticides Database: Imidacloprid (Pesticide Action Network)
- NPIC Imidacloprid Factsheet (National Pesticide Information Center)
- Studies:
- Imidacloprid and chlorpyrifos insecticides impair migratory ability in a seed-eating songbird. Eng, M, Stutchbury, BJM, Morrissey, C. 2017. Scientific Reports7: 15176. DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-15446-x
- 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
- Neonicotinoid Insecticides Alter the Gene Expression Profile of Neuron-Enriched Cultures from Neonatal Rat Cerebellum. Kimura-Kuroda, J, Nishito, Y, Yanagisawa, H et al. 2016. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 13(10): 987.
- 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.
- Neonicotinoid contamination of global surface waters and associated risk to aquatic invertebrates: A review. Morrissey, C. A., Mineau, P, Devries, J, et al. 2015. Environment International. 74 (2015) 291–303.
- Assessing Field‐Scale Risks of Foliar Insecticide Applications to Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus) Larvae. Krishnan, N., Zhang, Y., Bidne, K.G., Hellmich, R.L., Coats, J.R. and Bradbury, S.P., 2020. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 39(4), pp.923-941.
- Autism spectrum disorder, flea and tick medication, and adjustments for exposure misclassification: the CHARGE (CHildhood Autism Risks from Genetics and Environment) case-control study.. Keil AP, Daniels JL, Hertz-Picciotto I. 2014. Environ Health. 13(1):3.
- Early-life chemical exposures and risk of metabolic syndrome.. De Long NE, Holloway AC. 2017. Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 10:101-109.
- Imidacloprid Promotes High Fat Diet-Induced Adiposity in Female C57BL/6J Mice and Enhances Adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 Adipocytes via the AMPKα-Mediated Pathway.. Sun Q, Qi W, Xiao X, Yang SH, et al. 2017. J Agric Food Chem. 65(31):6572-6581
- Pesticide occurrence and persistence entering recreational lakes in watersheds of varying land uses. Satiroff, J.A., Messer, T.L., Mittelstet, A.R. and Snow, D.D. Environmental Pollution, 273, p.116399.
- Past insecticide exposure reduces bee reproduction and population growth rate. Stuligross, C. and Williams, N.M. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(48).
- Carryover effects of pesticide exposure and pond drying on performance, behavior, and sex ratios in a pool breeding amphibian. Thompson, C.M., Sweeney, M.R. and Popescu, V.D., 2022. Journal of Zoology.
- 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.
- 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.
- Major Pesticides Are More Toxic to Human Cells Than Their Declared Active Principles. Mesnage, R. et al. (2014) Major pesticides are more toxic to human cells than their declared active principles, BioMed Research International. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3955666/.
- Assessing the ecological impact of pesticides/herbicides on algal communities: A comprehensive review. Narayanan, N. et al. (2024) Assessing the ecological impact of pesticides/herbicides on algal communities: A comprehensive review, Aquatic Toxicology. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0166445X24000225?via%3Dihub.
- The molecular determinants of pesticide sensitivity in bee pollinators. Bass, C. et al (2024) The molecular determinants of pesticide sensitivity in bee pollinators, Science of The Total Environment. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969724003097.
- Residues of agrochemicals in beebread as an indicator of landscape management. Bogo, G. et al. (2024) Residues of agrochemicals in beebread as an indicator of landscape management, Science of The Total Environment. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969724042232?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.
- Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Exposure to Pesticide Residues in Nectar and Pollen in Urban and Suburban Environments from Four Regions of the United States. Démares, F.J. et al. (2022) Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Exposure to Pesticide Residues in Nectar and Pollen in Urban and Suburban Environments from Four Regions of the United States, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Available at: https://setac.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.5298.
- 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.
- 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.
- Nationwide Biomonitoring of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Breast Milk and Health Risk Assessment to Nursing Infants in the Chinese Population. Chen, D. et al. (2020) Nationwide Biomonitoring of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Breast Milk and Health Risk Assessment to Nursing Infants in the Chinese Population, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Available at: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.jafc.0c05769.