On July 22 the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced its decision to deregulate herbicide-resistant cotton developed by Dow AgroSciences.
Dow's Enlist cotton trait makes the cotton resistant to a blend of 2,4-D and glyphosate and to glufosinate. The 2,4-D/glyphosate blend is used in Dow's Enlist Duo herbicide, which the company developed to provide row-crop farmers with weed control options.
The USDA completed its regulatory review process for Enlist traits on corn and soybeans in September 2014. Enlist Duo is in the process of being reviewed by the EPA.
"I think folks are kind of being cautious about it," said Georgia Farm Bureau Cotton Committee Chairman Eddie Green. "If the technology is the latest technology available and if it's used in a judicious way, it gives growers another option for weed control."
The caution is based in part on the potential for chemical drift in diversified operations or cotton farms located next to farms producing other crops.
"Dicamba or 2,4-D based systems, once registered, can be used to improve weed control and our data even suggests input costs as well as hand weeding can be reduced," said UGA Extension Weed Scientist Stanley Culpepper. "The challenge and concern is our ability to collectively manage off-target movement of 2,4-D and dicamba in such a diverse state."
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