The federal government’s decision to ban the use of lambda-cyhalothrin insecticides on any crops destined for feed use has now led at least one Canadian miller to prohibit any deliveries of oats treated with the chemical.
Oregon-based processor Grain Millers, whose Canadian operations include its oat mill at Yorkton, Sask., said in a memo Tuesday to growers that the Canadian National Millers Association has asked all member businesses to advise growers of their lambda-cy policies.
The move comes after a 2021 re-evaluation decision by Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) took effect at the end of April this year, prohibiting the use of lambda-cy on some crops altogether and the use of any lambda-cy-treated crops as livestock feed.
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“Now, while most of you are growing your oats for human consumption, the issue lies in the byproducts that are produced in the milling process,” Grain Millers’ Yorkton procurement manager, Scott Shiels, said in the memo.
“For us, that is primarily the oat hulls, and screenings, which are almost exclusively sold into the feed market.”
Thus, he said, the company is “being forced to prohibit the use of lambda-cyhalothrin on any oats being sold to Grain Millers.”
From now on, he said, “prior to delivering any oats in the future,” growers will be required to sign a delivery affidavit which will include a statement to that effect.
Lambda-cy products currently registered in Canada for use in oats include Syngenta’s Matador and Warrior and Adama’s Zivata against grasshoppers, and Adama’s Silencer against armyworm.
Since April 29, however, those products’ labels all specifically prohibit their use on any crops that may be destined for feed, including crop screenings or other byproducts or aftermath. Treated fields also cannot be grazed by livestock, nor cut for hay or forage.
Among other prohibited products, Grain Millers’ memo also names Karate — a Syngenta insecticide in markets outside Canada — and Saber, a pour-on and ear-tag insecticide registered in Canada to protect cattle against insect pests.
Since late April, grain grower organizations have warned that because any crop entering the grain handling system is eligible for use as livestock feed, the use of lambda-cy “poses a risk of becoming an off-label use.”
Grower groups since then have also advised farmers to discuss any potential related market risk issues directly with their grain buyers. — Glacier FarmMedia Network
