# Pesticide SDS: find the current sheet and organise the farm file

URL: https://leafwrit.com/uk/pesticide-sds-folder/
Reviewed: 2026-10-29

A **pesticide safety data sheet (SDS)** describes the hazards of a product and gives handling, storage and emergency information that users need for a risk assessment. The older Code of Practice calls the same document the material safety data sheet (MSDS), also known as the product hazard data sheet, which is why pesticide MSDS sheets, herbicide MSDS sheets and an SDS for an insecticide are all the same kind of document.

A pesticide safety data sheet covers one product and carries its own version, revision date and print date. The label is a separate document that must always be supplied with the container.

To file one, identify the exact product first, then get the sheet from the supplier or the manufacturer's current product-document route. Check the version, revision date and any GB or Northern Ireland references against the container before the file goes into the farm's safety folder. Index it under the full preparation name (not "insecticide safety") so the storekeeper and the operator can find it, and note the source URL and the date you downloaded it. Index the version, revision date and print date separately, so that a replacement sheet can be compared with the archived copy.

## Who must provide the sheet

Suppliers must provide an up-to-date safety data sheet for a substance that is dangerous for supply. A sheet is also required when a chemical is not classed as hazardous but contains small amounts of a hazardous substance.

The sheet is not a risk assessment. It describes the hazards, and the employer uses it to judge how likely those hazards are to arise in the workplace under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH). Anyone who passes chemicals on to others must pass the sheets on with them.

## How a pesticide SDS differs from the label

The label is the main source of information on the safe and effective use of a product and must always be supplied with the container. The statutory conditions of use (crop, maximum dose, maximum number of treatments, latest time of application, harvest or re-entry interval) are set in the notice of authorisation, and authorisation details are published on the Pesticides Register of GB/NI Authorised Products. Section 7.3 of the DECIS PROTECH sheet, headed "Specific end use(s)", reads "Refer to the label and/or leaflet". Use the [HSE register guide](/uk/hse-gb-pesticides-approval-register/) to check an authorisation. The sheet's hazard information alone does not tell you whether a product may be used for your crop, so read the label and check the authorisation for the intended use as well.

## Finding the sheet for a named product

The sheet and the Decis insecticide label are separate downloads. For **DECIS PROTECH**, the Bayer Crop Science product page lists "Decis Protech SDS Download PDF" among its downloads. The sheet is **Version 11 / GB**, with **Revision Date 28.08.2025** and Print Date 12.09.2025. Section 16 states that this version replaces all previous versions and that section 3 (composition) was the part revised.

Check that the name and version on the sheet match the container. If they do not, send both identities and the document reference to the supplier, file the reply, and do not rely on the sheet of a similar trade name until the identity is settled. If you are replacing an old MSDS, ask the supplier for the current sheet; an old file that still turns up in a search engine is not proof that it is current. If two versions disagree, ask the issuer which applies.

## What the 16 sections contain

Keep the complete supplier sheet in the folder next to the index and point people to the section they need. These questions are the usual ones in a farm office:

| Question | Where to look in the sheet |
| --- | --- |
| Which product and issuer is this? | Section 1 |
| What hazards does it have? | Sections 2 and 3 |
| What do we do in an emergency? | Sections 4, 5 and 6 |
| What should we do when handling and storing it, and what protection do we need? | Sections 7 and 8 |
| What are its physical, chemical, toxicological and environmental properties? | Sections 9 to 12 |
| What about waste and transport? | Sections 13 and 14 |
| Which regulations are referred to, and what changed in this version? | Sections 15 and 16 |

| Sections | Heading in the DECIS PROTECH sheet |
| --- | --- |
| 1 | Identification of the substance/mixture and of the company/undertaking, including the emergency telephone number |
| 2, 3 | Hazards identification; composition/information on ingredients |
| 4, 5, 6 | First aid measures; firefighting measures; accidental release measures |
| 7, 8 | Handling and storage; exposure controls/personal protection |
| 9, 10 | Physical and chemical properties; stability and reactivity |
| 11, 12 | Toxicological information; ecological information |
| 13, 14 | Disposal considerations; transport information |
| 15, 16 | Regulatory information; other information |



## Hazards: mixture and ingredients

**Section 2** gives the mixture's classification: flammable liquid category 3 (H226), acute aquatic hazard category 1 (H400) and chronic aquatic hazard category 1 (H410). The label elements carry the signal word "Warning", H226, H410 and EUH208, an allergic-reaction statement for named ingredients.

Read the mixture's hazards and each ingredient's hazards separately when you think about exposure, and keep the complete hazard wording (symbols, statements, qualifiers) with the version you are using rather than rewriting it into a summary.

**Section 3** lists each ingredient with its own classification. Deltamethrin, at 1.47 %, is classified Acute Tox. 3 (H301, H331); cyclohexanone is classified Flam. Liq. 3 (H226) among other entries.

The example preparation is an **oil-in-water emulsion, EW**, containing **15 g/l deltamethrin**.

## Handling and storage (sections 7 and 8)

Compare sections 7 and 8 with your own filling position, store, ventilation and protective equipment, and note any difference in the task assessment. Section 7 says to keep the product away from heat and sources of ignition, that vapours may form an explosive mixture with air, to prevent build-up of electrostatic charge and to use only explosion-proof equipment.

For storage it says: store in the original container and out of the reach of children, preferably in a locked storage area; keep containers tightly closed in a dry, cool and well-ventilated place; keep away from direct sunlight; protect from freezing; keep away from food, drink and animal feedingstuffs. The listed suitable material is a combination of sheet metal and HDPE (high density polyethylene).

Hygiene measures: do not eat, drink or smoke when using; remove soiled clothing immediately and clean it thoroughly before using again; contaminated work clothing should not be allowed out of the workplace.

Section 8.2 refers to the COSHH assessment and states that engineering controls should be used in preference to personal protective equipment wherever practicable.

For the store itself, HSE guidance says to site a store at least four metres away from hay, straw, diesel, oils, paints, fertilisers, paper, wood stacks, gas containers and other combustible materials, and from domestic dwellings or sources of ignition. Further store requirements are in the [chemical-store guide](/uk/pesticide-store-checklist/).

## Emergency information (sections 1, 4, 5 and 6)

Keep section 1 and the emergency contacts where people can reach them without going into the store, and make sure the product name and version are visible on the index. Ask a colleague who does not look after the folder to find the right sheet and the first-aid page; fix whatever they trip over, such as unexplained abbreviations or an awkward location.

Section 1.4 of the DECIS PROTECH sheet gives the emergency telephone number 0330 678 3382 (24 hr) and the National Poisons Information Centre UK number 0344 892 0111.

**First aid.** After inhalation, move the person to fresh air, keep them warm and at rest, and call a physician or poison control centre. After skin contact, wash immediately with plenty of soap and water for at least 15 minutes. Remove contaminated clothing at once and dispose of it safely; if you feel unwell, seek medical advice immediately and show the label where possible.

**Fire.** Use water spray, alcohol-resistant foam, dry chemical or carbon dioxide; a high-volume water jet is unsuitable. Firefighters wear self-contained breathing apparatus.

**Spill.** Keep people away and upwind, do not let the product reach surface water, drains or groundwater, and soak it up with inert absorbent material. If it enters a river or watercourse, inform the Environment Agency.

## GB and Northern Ireland entries in the sheet

The DECIS PROTECH sheet carries a GB version identifier, a UFI marked "for Northern Ireland only", and a separate Northern Ireland supplier entry: Bayer CropScience Ltd, Stillorgan, Co. Dublin.

If you work in Northern Ireland, check those entries when you index the product. Keep GB and NI versions recognisable in the archive, and if a contractor works in several areas, link each task assessment to the version used for that job. When you rename a file in the office, keep the issuer's own document reference in the name or the index.

## Physical and chemical properties, stability, toxicology and ecology

DECIS PROTECH is water-miscible and has a flash point of **56.5°C**. Its approximate density is **1.02 g/cm³ at 20°C**.

Section 10 says the product is stable under normal conditions and recommended storage conditions; the conditions to avoid are extremes of temperature and direct sunlight, and the only incompatibility entry is "Store only in the original container".

If a property or incompatibility is unclear, send the supplier the exact passage and say what you are trying to do, and ask for an explanation that fits your workplace instead of guessing. When you pass ecological figures into an environmental assessment, keep the test organism and the endpoint with them.

Section 12 gives an LC50 of 0.014 mg/l for rainbow trout (96 h), an EC50 of 0.0007 mg/l for the water flea Daphnia magna (48 h) and an EC50 of 5.35 mg/l for algae (72 h); the fish and algae tests used a similar formulation.

## Exposure limits, disposal and transport entries

Section 8 lists workplace control parameters: 0.01 mg/m³ (TWA) for deltamethrin, and 41 mg/m³ (10 ppm) TWA and 82 mg/m³ (20 ppm) STEL for cyclohexanone under EH40.

Section 13 says the product may be taken to a waste disposal site or incineration plant in accordance with current regulations, with advice from the local waste regulation authority (part of the Environment Agency in the UK). Small containers under 10 litres or 10 kg are rinsed thoroughly with an integrated pressure rinsing device or manually three times, with the washings added to the sprayer at filling.

Section 14 gives UN number 1993, proper shipping name "Flammable liquid, N.O.S. (deltamethrin, cyclohexanone solution)", transport hazard class 3 and packaging group III, with the environmentally hazardous mark.

Before you ask anyone about waste or transport, work out what the question is about: unopened stock, concentrate, rinsings or packaging. Give the waste contractor or transport adviser the exact preparation, quantity, packaging and planned movement, and keep their answer with that consignment. Send each open question to the party who can answer it: the supplier for what the sheet says, your task assessor for your workplace, the waste contractor or transport adviser for a movement.

## Checking a downloaded sheet

Check that the downloaded file has all 16 numbered sections and that the text, tables and hazard statements are readable; if pages or attachments are missing, ask the issuer for a complete replacement. If an annex or supplier letter came with it, keep it as received and link it in the index to the matching sheet version. When a new version arrives, read section 16 and update the storage and handling assessment for anything that changed.

## Next step

Check the [store assessment](/uk/pesticide-store-checklist/), plan waste with the [sprayer washings and container disposal guide](/uk/sprayer-washings-container-disposal/) and confirm authorised uses in the [HSE register guide](/uk/hse-gb-pesticides-approval-register/).