The first crops of canola tolerant to bromoxynil will bloom in prairie fields this summer, preparing seed for the planned commercial launch of the new herbicide-tolerant system in 2000.
But the four new cultivars approved last week by the canola and rapeseed recommending committee still have hurdles to overcome.
The system has not yet been approved by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. And the herbicide, a new formulation that will be marketed as Compas, is not yet approved in Canada by the Pest Management Regulatory Agency.
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The cultivars were developed in partnership by the University of Manitoba, Rhone-Poulenc and Svalof Weibull. They will be marketed under the Navigator name.
It’s the second try for the system that researchers have been working on since 1992. Last year, a cultivar tolerant to bromoxynil failed to meet registration requirements. It had nothing to do with the herbicide tolerance issue. Rather, the line was slightly below the minimum allowable for oil and fat.
Dale Adolphe, president of the Canola Council of Canada, suggested the approval for the new bromoxynil-tolerant cultivars are breaking ground. In the past, when new herbicide-tolerant lines came up for registration review, their systems already had approval in the U.S. and Canada.
They were waiting for Japanese or other market approvals, but even if those were delayed, the production system could be crushed and sold in the large Canada-U.S. market.
Peter Bonus, of Svalof Weibull, said research permits from Canada’s PMRA allow the companies to grow 40-acre fields this summer. They want to increase seed for its expected launch in 2000, he said.
Rhone-Poulenc officials told the committee they expect Compas to be registered in Canada in September or October. In the U.S., the system has been approved for cotton and its use in canola is expected to be granted this fall.
The company is also working on getting the Navigator varieties approved for the Japanese market.
Bruce Howison of Cargill said his company is managing a closed-loop system this year. Production will be small and all seed will be saved pending regulatory approvals, or crushed for Canadian markets only.
Kerry Colborne, marketing manager with Rhone-Poulenc, said the new system will control broadleaf and grassy weeds, and is competitive with conventional varieties and other herbicide-tolerant systems.
The committee approved 44 new canola cultivars in total, half of them herbicide-tolerant. Four have low levels of linolenic acid. Only four were Polish cultivars.
Seven other cultivars with designer oil content were approved over the winter for specialty and contract registration. Some of these are also tolerant to herbicides.
