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New Website Pools Resources for Spray Operators, Farmers

A partnership between multiple farm organizations has created a new awareness campaign, Be Drift Aware. 

“Each of our organizations has shared best practice resources with our grower members over the years, and now we have pooled that information for easy access in a single location,” Marty Vermey, senior agronomist, Grain Farmers of Ontario, said in a release. 

Growers and spray operators can access all resources at a new central resource hub www.BeDriftAware.ca. The website includes an online quiz and resources organized around three key best practices – “be size aware,” “be height aware,” and “be wind aware.” 

Drift is the unintentional aerial movement of plant protection products away from the intended target. It is an issue that can impact crop yield, crop quality and input costs. Drift can also negatively impact neighbouring fields, residences, livestock, and sensitive natural habitats and cause tension with neighbours, the release said. 

“The call to action for this campaign is simple: our partners want to reduce spray drift across Ontario by providing easy access to the information when and where growers and spray operators need it,” says Janice Janiec, farm policy analyst, Ontario Federation of Agriculture. 

Be Drift Aware was created by Grain Farmers of Ontario, Ontario Federation of Agriculture, Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and CropLife Canada. 

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