Last week, Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) released its final special review decision on clothianidin and thiamethoxam, two seed treatments that farmers use to protect their emerging canola crops from early season pests.
The final decision found that current use of these products by canola farmers does not pose an unacceptable risk to aquatic invertebrates and that the product use be maintained for seed treatment on canola.
“This is great news for canola farmers as it maintains our ability to protect the canola crop at its earliest stages of development,” said Mike Ammeter, Chair of Canadian Canola Growers Association (CCGA). “Flea beetles can dramatically reduce stand viability if not controlled early and maintaining access to these products is important for the environmental and economic sustainability of the crop.”
Seed treatments play an important role in a canola farmer’s integrated pest management plan and the environmental sustainability of canola.
“We’re pleased that PMRA allowed time to consider all the relevant data to arrive at a decision based on the best science available,” commented Curtis Rempel, VP crop production and innovation at the Canola Council of Canada (CCC). “Our competitiveness as an agriculture sector relies on a regulatory system built on rigorous scientific analysis and evidence-based decision making.”
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