Legislation to further regulate certain seed treatments is advancing in the Minnesota House.
Minnesota Corn Growers Association president Richard Syverson says the bills involve seed treated with neonicotinoids (nee-oh-nick-eh-tih-noyds), a commonly used pesticide.
“The third (proposal) is probably the most problematic. This one would require certification of need before you could use treated seed.”
He tells Brownfield the proposals would put stricter regulations on seed treated with neonics than what the EPA has in place.
Minnesota Soybean Growers Association president Bob Worth suggests restrictions like these could set farmers back decades.
“You know, I don’t know when they’re going to go after herbicides or whatever. I mean, we could be going back farming the way we did 20 or 30 years ago with cultivation, etc. We’ve come a long ways in terms of soil health, we’ve come a long ways for erosion.”
On the Senate side, Agriculture Committee chair Aric Putnam tells Brownfield he’s gathering feedback from farmers.
Source: brownfieldagnews.com
Categories: Minnesota, Crops, Corn, Soybeans