White pepper powder |

Last updated: 25/08/2025
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(Not known by any other names) |
The following alerts are based on the data in the tables below. An absence of an alert does not imply the substance has no implications for human health, biodiversity or the environment but just that we do not have the data to form a judgement. These hazard alerts do not take account of usage patterns or exposure, thus do not represent risk.
Environmental fate |
Ecotoxicity |
Human health |
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White pepper is the seed of black pepper and is primarily used as a pest repellent |
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Damaging animals including deer, rodents, moles, geese; Flies including white fly (Bemisia tabaci) |
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Trees; Shrubs; Ornamentals |
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Not approved |
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Not applicable |
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No UK approval for use as a pest management agent |
EC Regulation 1107/2009 (repealing 91/414) |
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Not approved |
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Not applicable |
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Not applicable |
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Not applicable |
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No |
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ATAustria |
BEBelgium |
BGBulgaria |
CYCyprus |
CZCzech Republic |
DEGermany |
DKDenmark |
EEEstonia |
ELGreece |
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ESSpain |
FIFinland |
FRFrance |
HRCroatia |
HUHungary |
IEIreland |
ITItaly |
LTLithuania |
LULuxembourg |
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LVLatvia |
MTMalta |
NLNetherlands |
PLPoland |
PTPortugal |
RORomania |
SESweden |
SISlovenia |
SKSlovakia |
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ISIceland |
NONorway |
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White pepper powder itself is not isomeric, but some of the chemical compounds within it can exhibit isomerism. The key bioactive compound in white pepper is piperine. Piperine is an organic molecule that can exist alongside structural isomer or stereoisomer forms such as isopiperine, chavicine, and piperyline. |
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No |
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Mammal repellent; Insect repellent; Insecticide |
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Plant-derived |
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Natural; Complex mixture |
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Non-toxic. Repellency action is due to the pungent odour. |
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White pepper is the seed of black pepper |
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Crop protection |
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Damaging animals including deer, rodents, moles, geese; Flies including white fly (Bemisia tabaci) |
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Trees; Shrubs; Ornamentals |
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Late 20th century, repellency demonstrated scientifically |
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white pepper powder |
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USEPA minimum risk pesticide; USA GRAS |
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Not applicable |
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Not applicable |
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Not applicable |
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Not applicable |
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Off-white to buff coloured, powdery solid with a distinct pepper odour |
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Current |
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- The Big Cheese
- Protect Garden
- Vitax
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- Pepper Dust
- Protect Pepper Dust
- Must Garden Goose Repellent
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Usually formulated with other substances such as putrescent egg soilds, citric acid and plant oils. Formulated into pellets, powders and ready-to-use formulations. |
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Commercial production of white pepper powder for use as an animal repellent begins with harvesting ripe pepper berries from the Piper nigrum plant. These berries undergo a soaking process, typically in water for several days, to loosen and remove the outer skin, leaving behind the seed, which is then dried thoroughly to produce white peppercorns. The dried peppercorns are ground into a fine powder, which retains active compounds like piperine, piperidine, and various piperamides known for their pungency. |
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A Swedish study determined that the production of white pepper powder emits approximately 5.37 kg of CO₂-equivalent per kilogram of product. This footprint includes emissions from agriculture (48%), processing (44%), transport (4%), packaging and storage (~0%). |
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Decomposes before melting |
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Decomposes before boiling |
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As this parameter is not normally measured directly, a surrogate measure is used: ‘Photochemical oxidative DT₅₀’. Where data is available, this can be found in the Fate Indices section below. |
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Soil adsorption and mobility |
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None
Terrestrial ecotoxicology |
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> 5000 |
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Low |
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HUMAN HEALTH AND PROTECTION |
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> 5000 |
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Low |
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Carcinogen |
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Endocrine disruptor |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
A0 A = Chromosome aberration (EFSA database) 0 = No data ; B0 B = DNA damage/repair (EFSA database) 0 = No data ; C0 C = Gene mutation (EFSA database) 0 = No data ; D0 D = Genome mutation (EFSA database) 0 = No data ; E3 E = Unspecified genotoxicity type (miscellaneous data source) 3 = Negative |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
Reproduction / development effects |
Acetyl cholinesterase inhibitor |
Neurotoxicant |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
Respiratory tract irritant |
Skin irritant |
Skin sensitiser |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
?Possibly, status not identified |
XNo, known not to cause a problem |
Eye irritant |
Phototoxicant |
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?Possibly, status not identified |
No data found |
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Likely to be a gastro-intestinal irritant at high doses |
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No information available |
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Not regulated |
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white pepper powder |
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Record last updated: |
25/08/2025 |
Contact: |
aeru@herts.ac.uk |
Please cite as: |
Lewis, K.A., Tzilivakis, J., Warner, D. and Green, A. (2016) An international database for pesticide risk assessments and management. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal, 22(4), 1050-1064. DOI: 10.1080/10807039.2015.1133242 |