Authorities have seized over 19 tonnes and 28,000 litres of agricultural chemicals, including plant protection products and fertilizers, from warehouses associated with a major agricultural holding in Vardim, near Svishtov. The seized materials were found to be either banned for use in Bulgaria, lacking required Bulgarian labeling, or past their expiration dates. Inspectors from the Bulgarian Food Safety Agency (BFSA) inspected three storage facilities.
The Agency reported that only one warehouse was officially registered for the wholesale trade of such goods; the other two operated without proper regulation. Within the licensed facility, inspectors discovered 17.5 tonnes and 510 litres of banned fertilizers lacking Bulgarian labels, alongside 530 litres of expired fertilizers. This site also contained 49 tonnes of sugar beet product labeled in Ukrainian.
The two unregulated warehouses yielded further violations. Authorities recovered 10,380 litres and 1.875 tonnes of banned plant protection products without proper labeling, as well as 16,725 litres of expired substances. Additionally, 10 tonnes of sugar, stored in violation of safety protocols, were seized.
The BFSA confirmed that expired pesticides and fertilizers will be destroyed, and all banned imported goods will undergo further official inspection. While a final determination on the seized sugar remains pending, it is confirmed that the material will not be released to the retail market. These inspections are part of Operation SILVER AXE, a coordinated effort involving Europol and the European Anti-Fraud Office aimed at curbing the illegal import and distribution of unregistered agrochemicals across the EU.
Multiple national agencies were notified regarding the identified violations.
Topics: #tonnes #banned #fertilizers
