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Wednesday, February 09, 2011

EPA steps up enforcement of biotech restrictions

The Environmental Protection Agency has begun a crackdown on bitoech corn farmers in an attempt to ensure insect-resistant varieties of the crop remain effective. This year EPA "is requiring Pioneer Hi-Bred and other seed companies to contract with outside firms to inspect farmers who may be out of compliance," Philip Brasher of the Des Moines Register reports. "Farmers caught violating the rules at least two years out of five will be barred from buying seed from the same company the next season." In 2010 the companies will begin adding special tags to seed bags to explain the planting restrictions.

The restrictions limit where and how much seed the farmers can plant, and "one of the rules requires farmers in the Midwest to plant at least 20 percent of their corn to varieties that don't contain a biotech toxin, known as Bt, that kills the targeted insect larvae," Brasher writes. The rule prevents insects from becoming resistant to the toxin. "Rules also stipulate how far the toxin-free field has to be from the insect-resistant fields," Brasher writes.

According to a required annual report, a third or more farmers violated at least one restriction last year. "The long-term value of that technology far exceeds any short-term gain that might be derived by circumventing those guidelines," said Julius Schaaf, a farmer at Randolph who is a long-time leader in industry groups. Schaaf noted industry and grower groups have worked hard to increase awareness of the restrictions. "Pioneer has given a training DVD to its sales force this year in hopes of improving farmer compliance," Brasher writes. (Read more)

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