Substances authorised in Europe

The Essentials in 4 Points

• In the European Union, a preparation that claims to protect plants against pests is considered a plant protection product: it must be authorized (Regulation (EC) No. 1107/2009).
• Exception: “basic substances” (Article 23 of the same regulation). Once approved for the entire EU, they may be used without a product authorization, but only for the uses, doses, and formulations described in their review report.
• "PNPPs" are a French classification: they refer to either basic substances or natural substances used as biostimulants (SNUBs), which claim only to be natural and to have a biostimulant effect.
• A homemade preparation is covered only if ALL of its ingredients appear on these lists and if it is prepared and used in accordance with the conditions listed there.

The 28 basic substances approved in the EU

List as of October 13, 2026 (Part C of the Annex to Implementing Regulation (EU) No. 540/2011). Approvals are not time-limited. Specific uses, doses, and crops are listed in the review report for each substance (EU Pesticide Database).

In organic farming, Annex I of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/1165 permits the specifically listed basic substances and, more generally, those that are foodstuffs of plant or animal origin.

Eligible: Applications currently under review

Source: Minutes of the European Commission’s Standing Committee (SCoPAFF, Plant Protection Products Section), March 2025 through September 2026. A simplification proposal (“omnibus,” COM(2025) 1030) calls for the rewriting of Article 23.

Rejected or set aside

A homemade preparation made from these substances is not covered under the basic substances program.

France: the PNPPs

Article L.253-1 of the Rural Code distinguishes between two categories of PNPPs: those composed of basic substances (see the European list above) and those composed exclusively of natural substances used as biostimulants (SNUBs). SNUBs are classified as fertilizers: their labeling may only highlight their natural character and their use as biostimulants.

Permitted processes: no processing or manual, mechanical, or gravitational methods; dissolution or extraction with water or alcohol; steam distillation; heating to remove water. Examples: fermentation (liquid manure), maceration, decoction, infusion, pressing. Excluded: freeze-drying, atomization, ultrasound, microwaves.

Who is authorized as a SNUB? The list is open:

• Any edible part of a plant used for human or animal consumption (fruits, vegetables, seeds, seaweed), whether fresh, dried, or frozen—specifications set forth in the decree of June 14, 2021. Approximately 1,200 species, according to ITAB.
• The 148 medicinal plants that are available over the counter (Article D.4211-11 of the Public Health Code).
• Field horsetail (above-ground parts, decoction, or infusion) and willow (bark and stems, infusion), added by decree in 2022.

Requirements: Keep the registration form on file for 3 years; note the expiration date; do not apply within 3 days of harvest for unheated preparations; keep essential oils at least 5 m away from a water source. Plants listed in the EFSA Compendium (e.g., comfrey): document that the dose is safe.

The 148 over-the-counter plants (by usage category)

• Herbs: basil, marjoram, oregano, rosemary, thyme, wild thyme, garden and mountain savory, sage (common, Spanish, clary, and three-lobed), bay leaf, tarragon, peppermint and spearmint, lemon balm, lemon verbena, balsam
• Lavender varieties: true lavender, spike lavender, stoechas lavender, lavandin grosso
• Apiaceae: dill, green anise, caraway, ajwain, cilantro, bitter and sweet fennel, angelica (fruit), lovage, marsh angelica
• Spices: star anise, Ceylon and Chinese cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg and mace, ginger, turmeric, temoe-lawacq, large and small galangal, cayenne pepper, saffron, fenugreek, reed mustard, horseradish, juniper, lemongrass
• Wild Plants and Herbal Teas: dioecious and stinging nettles, white deadnettle, yarrow, lady's mantle, woodruff, greater burdock, pimpernel, mullein, borage, heather, Roman chamomile, feverfew, small centaury, chicory, dandelion, couch grass, cowbane, poppy, nasturtium, garlic mustard, sea fennel, elecampane, yellow gentian, marshmallow, mallow, hollyhock, hops, ground ivy, meadowsweet, wild pansy, violet, meadowsweet, bramble, Chinese gooseberry, linden, ash trees, Scots pine (bud), eucalyptus, myrtle, olive tree (leaf), red vine (leaf), roses, rosehip
• Fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds: garlic, black radish, oats, wheat (bran), rye, flax, sweet almond, squash and pumpkin (seeds), black currant, blueberry, hawthorn, fig, apple, plum, cherry stems, black elderberry, jujube, bitter and sweet orange, papaya, tamarind, sugarcane, hibiscus, ambrette, safflower
• Stimulating and exotic plants: tea, mate, kola, guarana, ginseng, eleuthero, licorice, aloe (mucilage)
• Seaweed and lichen: agar-agar, ascophyllum, carrageenan, fucus, kelp, Iceland moss
• Gums: gum arabic, tragacanth, karaya, guar, carob, locust bean, copahu balm

This is a tentative grouping; the official numbered list is set forth in Article D.4211-11 of the Public Health Code.

France: What SNUB Might Become

• No specific processing required: any edible part of the plant prepared in accordance with the 2021 specifications.
• Non-food plants or non-plant substances: application submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture, evaluation by ANSES, followed by a ministerial order (e.g., horsetail and willow approved in 2022; leonardite rejected in 2023).
• Individual authorization: specifically for essential oils not included in the specifications.
• Excluded: GMO plants, contaminated plants, plants exceeding residue limits, and essential oils already approved as active ingredients.

Elsewhere in Europe

Italy — “plant growth promoters, enhancers of plants’ natural defenses” (Ministerial Decree No. 229771 of May 20, 2022, Annex 2), 15 categories:

1. Propolis (aqueous, hydroalcoholic, or oily extract)
2. Rock powder
3. Sodium bicarbonate (≥ 99.5%)
4. Silica gel
5. Biodynamic preparations
6. Edible vegetable oils
7. Lecithin
8. Wine vinegar or fruit vinegar
9. Soft soap or Marseille soap
10. Quicklime
11. Chestnut extract rich in tannins
12. Ascorbic acid in solution (post-harvest)
13. Ozonated vegetable oil
14. Glycolic extract of flavonoids
15. Inactivated Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast

• Germany: Plant fortifiers (Pflanzenstärkungsmittel) must be notified to the BVL before they are placed on the market; the BVL publishes a list that is updated monthly.
• Spain: The “otros medios de defensa fitosanitaria” regime was significantly restricted in 2014 (Royal Decree 951/2014); there is no equivalent to PNPPs. These products are classified as either plant protection products or fertilizers/biostimulants.
• Portugal: Plant extracts and oils used to protect crops are plant protection products that require authorization (DGAV, 2023).
• Belgium and other countries: general European law (basic substances for plant protection; Regulation (EU) 2019/1009 on biostimulants).

Regulatory updates

• 15/10/2026 — UE — EFSA, pesticides (avis et rapports)
  143rd Plenary meeting of the Panel on Plant Protection Products and their Residues (PPR) - Open for observers … Overall conclusions on the application for approval of chitosan hydrochloride as a basic substance for extension of use in plant protection for oilseed rape crops and potatoes

The recipes in this collection and their status

Each recipe shows its regulatory status. Open a recipe to see the details and official texts.

Authorised (40)

• Aromatic plant hydrosol ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Beer Trap for Slugs and Snails ✅ Authorised EU
• Bijamrita ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Biol ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Bordeaux mixture ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Chitosan hydrochloride solution ✅ Authorised EU
• Chitosan solution ✅ Authorised EU
• Diluted cow's milk ✅ Authorised EU
• Diluted milk whey (whey) ✅ Authorised EU
• Extracto acuoso de semilla de neem ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Fish amino acids (FAA) ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Fructose solution ✅ Authorised EU
• Grape seed extract solution ✅ Authorised EU
• Horsetail (Equisetum arvense) Decoction ✅ Authorised EU
• Humus hydrolysate ✅ Authorised EU
• Hydrogen peroxide (oxygenated water) for disinfecting tools and seeds ✅ Authorised EU
• Jeevamrut ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Marinade of garlic, pepper, and hot chili pepper ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Neem leaf brew ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Nettle liquid fertilizer ✅ Authorised EU
• Onion bulb extract (Allium cepa) ✅ Authorised EU
• Onion Oil in Diffusers to Control Carrot Flies ✅ Authorised EU
• Oriental Herbal Nutrient (OHN) ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Potassium soap ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Propolis tincture ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Salt solution (sodium chloride) for vineyards ✅ Authorised EU
• Slaked lime slurry against fruit tree canker ✅ Authorised EU
• Sodium bicarbonate solution ✅ Authorised EU
• Soluble calcium phosphate (WCaP) ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Sucrose (sugar) solution ✅ Authorised EU
• Sulfocalcic paste ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Sulfocalcic solution ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Sunflower oil dispersed in water ✅ Authorised EU
• Treatment of wheat seeds with mustard seed powder ✅ Authorised EU
• Té de botón de oro (Tithonia) ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Vinegar for seed treatment and tool disinfection ✅ Authorised EU
• Vinegar for weed management ✅ Authorised EU
• Water-soluble calcium (WCA) ✅ Authorised (some countries)
• Willow Bark (Salix spp.) Infusion ✅ Authorised EU
• Worm castings ✅ Authorised EU

Authorised under conditions (13)

• Biochar ⚠️ Tolerated
• Biodynamization of biofertilizers ⚠️ Tolerated
• Chitosan ⚠️ Tolerated
• Lime oil ⚠️ Tolerated
• Multinutritional block for livestock ⚠️ Tolerated
• Pumpkin biofertilizer ⚠️ Tolerated
• Sprouted seed water ⚠️ Tolerated
• Supermagro Simple ⚠️ Tolerated
• Té de boñiga ⚠️ Tolerated
• Water glass (homemade sodium silicate) ⚠️ Tolerated
• Weeping Willow Bark Water for Cuttings ⚠️ Tolerated
• Wood ash brew ⚠️ Tolerated
• Wool amino acids ⚠️ Tolerated

Not authorised in the EU as home-made preparations (8)

• Bioblood ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Bone ash ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Jasmonates ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Lactic acid bacteria serum (LAB) ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Mineral salts for livestock ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Phosphites ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Seed coating (pelleting) ⛔ Not authorised EU
• Sulfoneem ⛔ Not authorised EU