In this episode of Agrarpolitik – der Podcast and swiss-food.ch, Michael Beer, Head of the Food and Nutrition Division at the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO), explains how plant protection products are authorised and monitored in Switzerland.

Beer emphasises that every approval is preceded by an extensive and complex review process. 'Explaining the process in a few sentences is almost as demanding as carrying it out,' he notes. A comprehensive dossier containing toxicological data, efficacy studies and environmental assessments is distributed among various specialised bodies: Agroscope evaluates efficacy, the Federal Office for the Environment reviews environmental aspects, and SECO assesses worker protection. Only once all assessments are completed does the FSVO decide whether a product may be authorised and under what conditions. The goal is to ensure use is as safe as possible for humans and the environment.

Beer also explains that Switzerland regularly relies on EU knowledge and procedures to avoid duplication and to incorporate the latest international scientific understanding.

Beer further stresses that agriculture is not responsible for every media headline about threshold exceedances. Farmers follow clear rules. Determining which thresholds apply and how they are set is the responsibility of authorities and scientists. He explains the role threshold values play in risk assessment: thresholds serve as monitoring tools. What matters for approval are the product’s efficacy, the protection of people, and its environmental safety.

According to Beer, the biggest challenge is communication. Many people do not know how to interpret threshold values. In addition, modern analytical methods can detect even the tiniest traces today. But the mere detection of a residue does not automatically mean there is a risk. This creates uncertainty – but not necessarily greater danger. Beer describes in detail the communication challenges surrounding regulations and thresholds and highlights the importance of transparent and understandable explanations. Trust can only develop when people understand why thresholds exist, which conditions apply and why assessment procedures are so complex.

The episode demonstrates how carefully these procedures are designed – and that a factual discussion about threshold values is only possible when the underlying processes are understood.