Glyphosate-based pesticides are farmers’ number one tool to control weeds, keep yields high, and implement conservation practices that use less land and resources. But a lack of legislative certainty around pesticide labeling has fueled costly litigation, and efforts to regulate pesticides in a manner that would benefit farmers.
Executive Director of Modern Ag Alliance, Elizabeth Burns-Thompson says, “We are a coalition of well over 100 different organizations from all across the country. State commodity groups, agri-business associations from coast to coast that have gotten together to work proactively to ensure that farmers have access to those critical crop protection tools.”
While glyphosate is the focus today, if not addressed, the future of valuable crop protection tools and critical innovations may be at stake. Burns-Thompson continued, “It’s been kind of the Bellwether what we believe of what the rest of the chemistry industry stands to face if we don’t have some solutions on this, so we worked proactively to ensure that at the end of the day the label is the law.”
Fortunately, state-based legislation has been introduced to provide the legislative certainty needed to protect farmers’ access to these safe and approved tools. “There’s a potential solution that could be part of a skinny farm bill. As we tee up, Congress comes back after the August recess and it’s also part of the appropriations process right now on the house side. So, we are very optimistic currently that that train will continue to move forward. We’re hoping to see some collaboration on the Senate side in that respect too but this is a really critical problem and so we are truly living no stone left unturned,” said Burns-Thompson.
For more information go to modernagalliance.org
