EPA settles with Maui Varieties over illegal import-distribution of unregistered pesticides

The US Environmental Protection Agency reached a settlement with Maui Varieties Ltd. (dba HouseMart) over claims of illegal import and distribution of 23 types of unregistered pesticides and two misbranded pesticide devices – including purported disinfectant or antimicrobial health products — through Daiso locations across Hawai‘i.

According to the EPA, import and distribution of unregistered or misbranded pesticide products, including those claiming to be disinfectants or antimicrobials, violates the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. Under the settlement, the company will pay a $314,747 penalty.

“EPA will not tolerate companies selling unregistered or misbranded disinfectants that are not effective, potentially unsafe, or make false claims,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “We will use our enforcement authorities to protect adults, children and pets by removing these illegal products from the marketplace.”

During mid-2020 through early 2021, EPA, with the help of the Hawai’i Department of Agriculture, found that HouseMart was selling unregistered pesticides and misbranded pesticide devices. EPA investigated further and found that HouseMart had imported unregistered pesticides and misbranded pesticide devices without filing Notices of Arrival with the EPA prior to the products arriving in the United States. EPA requires importers to file a Notice of Arrival before pesticides or pesticide devices arrive in the country, so that EPA can determine if the products are compliant with federal law and can therefore be distributed within the American marketplace.

Additionally, EPA found that HouseMart, the exclusive operator of Daiso retail stores in the state of Hawai’i (including Hilo, Pearl City, Pi‘ikoi (O‘ahu), and downtown Honolulu), distributed 23 unregistered pesticides and two misbranded pesticide devices. Pesticides that make claims to kill or mitigate pests, including those of a microbial nature, must be registered by the EPA before sale and are limited in the scope of the pesticidal claims that they are allowed to make.

Public health claims for registered pesticide products, which includes disinfectants, can only be made once approved through EPA’s registration review process. EPA evaluates pesticides to ensure that when they are used according to label directions, they will not harm people, non-target species or the environment. Unregistered pesticides can be harmful to human health and the environment, cause adverse effects, and may not be effective against the spread of germs.

For more information on the federal statute that regulates the registration, distribution, sale, and use of pesticides in the United States, please visit EPA’s FIFRA website.

For more information on reporting possible violations of environmental laws and regulations, visit EPA’s enforcement reporting website.