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Minnesota farmer concerned about pesticide regulations

A west-central Minnesota farmer is concerned regulations will further limit the availability of crop protection products.

Jamie Beyer grows soybeans, corn, sugarbeets, and alfalfa near Wheaton and says her crops depend on certain pesticides.

“And every time a tool gets removed from that packet of available products, it really wreaks havoc on the rest of us and puts more pressure on the tools that are left.”

Beyer is a member of both the Minnesota Soybean Growers and American Soybean Association board of directors and tells Brownfield the EPA is looking to add additional conditions to several pesticide and herbicide labels.

“There are a lot of people in Washington, D.C. who think they know how you can grow crops and they think it doesn’t take pesticides, which we all know not to be the case.”

American Soybean Association director of government affairs Kyle Kunkler says ASA is working closely with the EPA to ensure an effective, efficient, evidence-based regulatory process for registering pesticides.