Lydia Mulvany and Mario Parker, “Monsanto Shrugs Off Herbicide Concerns With Surprise Profit,” Bloomberg, October 4, 2017.
SUMMARY
Reports on Monsanto’s rising economic fortunes. Stock prices were up recently 20 cents a share, even though analysts had estimated the company would be at a 42-cent loss. Monsanto attributes much of this to their new dicamba-resistant Xtend soybeans, and predicts a doubling of acres planted in 2018 to 40 million. FULL TEXT
Jackie Pucci, “Missouri Latest State to Set Cut-off Dicamba Date for ’18,” CropLife, November 20, 2017.
SUMMARY:
Reports on the Dicamba ban on Engenia use in Missouri for 2018 after June 10 (some counties) or July 15 (all counties). Adds the detail that all applicators will be required to receive mandatory training by state Extension offices. FULL TEXT
FERN’s Ag Insider, “Missouri limits use of BASF’s dicamba weedkiller,” November 16,2017.
SUMMARY:
The Missouri Agriculture Department announces a partial ban on the use of BASF’s Engenia on cotton and soybeans. Engenia applicatiosn will be banned after June 10, 2018 in 10 southeastern counties most affected this year, and after July 15 across the rest of the state. Further restrictions on Monsanto and DuPont’s new dicamba formulations are forthcoming, the Department said. FULL TEXT
Steve Davies, “No dicamba use after April 15, Arkansas plant board says,” Agri-Pulse, November 8, 2017.
SUMMARY:
On Wednesday November 7, the Arkansas State Plant Board voted 10-3 to ban dicamba use between April 16-October 31 in 2018. Monsanto was “fiercely opposed” to this ban, which now heads to the executive committee of the Arkansas Legislative Council for final approval. Monsanto has filed a lawsuit against the plant board over the partial ban implemented this year, and submitted extensive comments against the 2018 ban. BASF’s Engenia herbicide was the only dicamba formulation approved in Arkansas in 2017 for use with the new resistant crops, and Monsanto claims that BASF told them that it sold only about enough Engenia to cover half the state’s soybean crop. This would mean that much of the dicamba sprayed in 2017 was off-label use, a claim disputed by other experts. FULL TEXT
Eric Lipton, “Crops in 25 States Damaged by Unintended Drift of Weed Killer,” The New York Times, November 1, 2017.
SUMMARY:
“Dicamba has damaged more than 3.6 million acres of soybean crops, or about 4 percent of all soybeans planted in the United States this year.” Reuben Baris, acting chief of the herbicide branch at the EPA, calls the damage “unacceptable” and suggests that the actual number of drift incidents could be up to 5 times greater than he over 2,700 reports due to a large number of incidents going unreported. Impacts to yields are still unknown, according to the EPA. The initial approval of dicamba for over the top use expires after only 2 years. This article states that EPA officials made it clear that re-approval is in jeopardy if the companies can’t find ways to mitigate damage. FULL TEXT
Tom Polansek, “Monsanto, BASF weed killers strain U.S. states with damage complaints,” Reuters, November 1, 2017.
SUMMARY:
Reports on the latest on the 2017 dicamba damage crisis. Major soybean states such as Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois received roughly 4 years’ worth of complaints about damaged crops. A total of 2,708 damage investigations have been initiated as of October 15th. In Illinois, where they received 421 complaints, the most since 1989, they expect investigations to continue through next year. Investigations will determine if applicators followed lengthy label instructions (up to 4,550 words). Monsanto believes this off-label application is the issue and plans to change usage instructions before the next crop season. The article points out the expense to state ag agencies to cover this surge in complaints and associated staff demands. Some states are putting off other inspections to manage dicamba complaints, and budgets are strained. The EPA has offered 35 states extra grants to help fund dicamba damage investigations, and is helping states by conducting states for low-levels of dicamba. FULL TEXT
Michael Biesecker, “EPA, herbicide makers agree to new limits for use of dicamba,” Associated Press, October 13, 2017.
SUMMARY:
The EPA announced its deal with Monsanto, BASF and DuPont to allow dicamba use in 2018 with “tangible changes” that will be implemented in the upcoming growing season. Dicamba will be labeled “restricted use” and applicators will be required to get additional training and certifications, and new rules will be implemented related to time of day of application and no spraying when wings are over 10 mph. The EPA worked closely with the three companies and Monsanto praised the new label restrictions, saying they are “confident the required training and record keeping can address the main causes of off-target movement.” The EPA praises the “cooperative federalism” that brought about this agreement. FULL TEXT
Arthur Nelsen, “Monsanto banned from European parliament,” The Guardian, September 28, 2017.
SUMMARY:
Lobbyists affiliated with the company were banned in September 2017 after Monsanto failed to attend a hearing about alleged regulatory interference. The company is under investigation for influencing regulatory studies conducted for glyphosate relicensing. FULL TEXT
American Soybean Association, ” ASA Steps up Urgency in Search for Answers on Dicamba Damage,” ASA News Release, September 25, 2017.
SUMMARY:
This American Soybean Association (ASA) news release addresses dicamba drift damage, now an issue in 21 of the 30 soybean producing states, and reiterates their support of new formulations since “farmers need and want new technologies to help fight resistant weeds” but call out the “need to ensure that these products can be used by farmers…safely.” Ron Moore, ASA president and farmer in dicamba-drift affected Illinois is extensively quoted and cites the ASA’s support for independent research at university ag departments in the affected states, and calls for “additional education, applications restrictions, or other actions” to address root causes of the drift problem. While the problem is mainly stemming from soybeans, Moore recognizes the “good neighbor aspect…ASA has a duty to ensure that we are successfully coexisting with other crops.” FULL TEXT
Greg Horstmeier, ” Dicamba: Arkansas Plant Board Unanimously Sets Mid-April Limit,” AgFax, September 22, 2017.
SUMMARY:
The Arkansas State Plant Board reached a unanimous decision to ban dicamba use in the state from August 16 – October 31, 2018 in an attempt to mitigate damage from drift. This would allow spring and fall burndown and pre-emergence application, but not the over the top spraying on growing crops that the new formulation and dicamba resistant seeds are engineered for. Plus, the board passed a resolution commending the Arkansas weed scientists whose scientific integrity was questioned by Monsanto in their bid to persuade the board to reject the proposed ban. The story includes key new information about volatility research that was presented to the board as part of the hearing process. Herbicide industry reps continued to downplay volatility and point fingers at operator error, while independent weed scientists reported that their findings showed that while volatility was lower immediately after spraying, volatilization continued 36 to 72 hours after application, meaning that “over time the amount of volatility between old and new formulations was not statistically different.” The board also rejected Monsanto’s argument that drift damage appears to not have caused yield loss, and is therefore not important to address. Board members felt this is “beyond the point when you are talking about pesticide stewardship” and bristled at Monsanto’s characterization of the proposed ban as “arbitrary and capricious.” FULL TEXT