Ontario Field Crop Report– September 28, 2017

Sep 28, 2017

New Online Version for Inspection of Soil Pest Assessment Reports (PAR): Those requiring access to Class 12 Pesticides Neonicotinoid (NNI) treated corn and soybean seeds) are required to submit an Inspection of Soil Pest Assessment Report to their seed vendor prior to the purchase of the seed.

There is now an online version of the form that can be filled out and sent directly to your vendor at: https://omafra.secure.force.com/PAR.

Your seed vendor will be advised of your PAR submission, and once accepted, a copy of the form will be sent directly to OMAFRA. This eliminates the need for the vendor to take the additional step of submitting these online forms to OMAFRA by October 31st of each year. In addition, the online version also makes use of the AgMaps mapping tool to complete and attach the required field sketches done by the producers or Professional Pest Advisor to the online form.

Schedule 1 Begins for Phased-In Professional Pest Advisors (PPA): Fall is a great time to scout for wireworms and grubs (Figure 1.) if you require a Pest Assessment Report (PAR) for the purchase of Class 12 Pesticides (NNI treated corn and soybean seed) for next year’s growing season. A PAR is valid for 12 months from the time the assessment was completed. Anyone certified through the IPM course at https://www.ipmcertified.ca/ can conduct the PAR each year until the year that their farm property lands within one of the schedules.

Figure 1. European chafer grub
posted as soon as possible on the Field Crop News website at: http://fieldcropnews.com/

Schedule 1 begins on August 31, 2017 until August 30, 2018. Those farm properties that are in the counties listed under Schedule 1 will require a PPA to conduct their next Pest Assessment Report (See Table 1, below). This does not mean that a PAR is revoked and a new one is required.

However, once the PAR expires after 12 months, the next PAR must be completed by a PPA. Also beginning on August 31, 2017, the regulation requires that the professional pest advisor be financially independent. This means he/she cannot receive a specific financial incentive (above and beyond their salary or commission) to promote the sale of Class 12 pesticide-treated corn or soybean seed over the sale of non-Class 12 seed.

Source: OMAFRA

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Video: Why Invest in Canada’s Seed Future? | On The Brink: Episode 3

Darcy Unger just invested millions to build a brand-new seed plant on his farm in Stonewall, Manitoba so when it’s time for his sons to take over, they have the tools they need to succeed.

Right now, 95% of the genetics they’ll be growing come from Canadian plant breeders.

That number matters.

When fusarium hit Western Canada in the late 90s, it was Canadian breeders who responded, because they understood Canadian conditions. That ability to react quickly to what’s happening on Canadian farms is exactly what’s at risk when breeding programs lose funding.

For farmers like Darcy, who have made generational investments based on the assumption that better genetics will keep coming, the stakes are direct and personal.

We’re on the brink of decisions that will shape our agricultural future for not only our generation, but also the ones to come.

What direction will we choose?

On The Brink is a year-long video series traveling across Canada to meet the researchers, breeders, farmers, seed companies, and policymakers shaping the future of Canadian plant breeding. Each week, a new story. Each story, a piece of the bigger picture.

Episode 3 is above. Follow Seed World Canada to catch every episode, and tell us: Do you think the next generation will have the tools they need to success when they takeover? How is the future going to look?