SASKATOON (Staff) – Oat producers who think their product might be exported to the United States shouldn’t use a pre-harvest application of glyphosate herbicide this year.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is considering an application to allow pre-harvest applications of glyphosate in that country. It expected to rule by Aug. 12.
But because of administrative delays “the EPA will not issue the final rule in time to allow Canadian producers the option of using glyphosate on oats intended for export to the U.S.,” said the American Oat Association in an Aug. 14 statement.
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The Canadian Grain Commission said in a release that the oat association has warned glyphosate treatment of oats would likely create illegal residue levels which would result in rejection by U.S. buyers.
“Any blending or commingling of glyphosate-treated oats with non-treated oats would likely result in the same action.”
Glyphosate under the trade name Roundup is registered in Canada for pre-harvest use on oats. The residue tolerance here is 10 parts per million. In the U.S. it is 0.1 parts per million.
The U.S. buys almost all of Canada’s oat exports, expected to be close to 1.5 million tonnes in 1996-97.
