Amazon’s Pesticide Policy: How We Help Clients Falsely Flagged
The Problem
Recently, one of our clients had their entire line of products (100+ listings) removed from Amazon for violating Amazon’s Pesticide Policy. The products weren’t pesticides or even close- they were cloth face masks that had been selling on Amazon since well before the pandemic.
We immediately appealed the claim and sought the help of their Amazon Advertising Account Executive. Internally, Amazon tried to escalate the issue to directly contest the false Pesticide Classification. As the days passed, the client was not only missing out on sales, but continuing to spend money on Amazon DSP for products that weren’t currently available.
Frustrations grew and we didn’t seem to be getting anywhere. As a last-ditch effort, we experimented removing certain language like “mold” from the listing descriptions and bullet points. Consequently, the listings were almost immediately re-activated. The mask made claims to keep particles out, including dust and mold. This is entirely true of the product- and doesn’t sound like a pesticide at all, so why did this happen?
Why are products that aren’t pesticides getting flagged for pesticide violations?
Products in any category can be flagged as pesticides on Amazon.
In February 2021, for the third time in three years, the EPA ordered Amazon to stop selling illegal pesticides on its online marketplace.
According to an article written by the Seattle Times, "Between 2013 and 2018, the EPA charged that Amazon committed nearly 4,000 violations of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act by allowing third-party vendors to sell and distribute from Amazon warehouses pesticides and disinfectants that had not been evaluated by the EPA for safety and efficacy."
Amazon has set several practices in place to halt sales of illegal pesticides on the platform. One of which is a mandatory e-learning module on federal pesticide regulations that it requires all vendors selling pesticides on its platform to take. You must score higher than 80% or higher on the end-of-course test.
In another, less fool-proof effort to combat sales of pesticides, Amazon has created restrictions on certain words or claims. As time passes and the EPA continues to go after Amazon, it seems like the bots catching these words are becoming increasingly sensitive. Many of these keywords and terms commonly appear in listings that are not pesticide-related, resulting in listings across a variety of categories getting removed for being “illegal pesticides”.
How can I avoid getting my listings falsely flagged as pesticides and removed?
The best way to avoid this issue is to avoid using keywords that may trigger Amazon to suspect that your product is a pesticide. Amazon has never provided an official list of restricted terms and keywords, and unfortunately, like many things on the seller-side of Amazon, this is all speculative.
The list below has been gathered from multiple sources, including our own experiences. It is not an official or complete list of keywords that may get your product flagged as a pesticide.
Your product should not claim to kill, repel, capture, prevent or be a barrier to any organism, animal, plant, fungus, microbe, bacteria, virus, etc.
Keywords to avoid:
Anti-bacterial
Bacteria
Disease/s
Repels mold
Pesticide
Anti-Microbial
Reducing/eliminating odors disinfect
Repel insects
Remove allergens
Prevent bacteria
Antiviral
Antifungal
Antibacterial FDA
Biodegradable
Harmless
Eco-friendly
Recyclable
BPA-Free
Compostable
Insecticide
Pesticide
Insect
Pest
Pest-Control
“Safe”
Germ Non-Poisonous
Non-Injurious
Non-Toxic
Antiseptic
Germ
Fungus
What should you do if your listings have been flagged as pesticides and removed?
You have a few options here, and I recommend trying all of them as soon as possible. Unfortunately for the seller, Amazon’s interest is in avoiding being slapped with more lawsuits, not in getting your listings re-instated.
Appeal the false pesticide claim in Seller Central
Remove any potentially problematic language from the description, product title, keyword list and bullet points. Make sure to remove images that may contain this language as well.
Contact your Amazon Advertising Account Executive. While they may not immediately be able to do anything, they can put in a ticket to appeal the claim internally, which will likely get you further than contacting seller support.
As always, feel free to contact us at Granitsa E-Commerce Solutions if you’ve been falsely flagged. We’re always here to help.
