By TIM ALEXANDER
Illinois Correspondent

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) decision to effectively ban the use of carbofuran insecticides (marketed as Furadan) in 2010 is cause for concern for Illinois’ pumpkin and corn growers, according to Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Assoc. President Jean Payne.

“From the retailers I spoke with about its cancellation, they expressed concern that agriculture is losing another tool in its toolbox,” Payne told Farm World. “While Furadan is not used widely anymore because of the insecticidal properties that are now in the seed, it is still used from time to time as a rescue treatment for black cutworm in corn, and also on non-GMO crops that do not have the protection in the seed itself. It is also used on the pumpkin crop, a big crop for Illinois.”

The EPA announced earlier this month that it had revoked all U.S. food tolerances for the pesticide carbofuran. Though the EPA announced in 2006 it plans to cancel the product as a toxic substance not meeting current U.S. food safety standards, it recently stated distributors and retailers may continue to sell Furadan to farmers through Dec. 31.

That date would also represent the cutoff for usage by growers without concern that residue found in treated crops will interfere with the commodity’s sale.

FMC Corp., which markets Furadan, said in response it would file objections to the EPA’s action and seek an administrative hearing. EPA’s decision to revoke crop tolerances in advance of product cancellation is unprecedented in U.S. pesticide regulatory history, according to FMC.

FMC has already withdrawn 22 uses for Furadan, though the corporation contends that independent scientific experts and its own recent submissions to the EPA confirm carbofuran has acceptable dietary risk.

“We are very disappointed by the EPA revocation and their unwillingness to recognize that our voluntary changes to the label allowed the product to meet the dietary safety standard using EPA’s own conservative assumptions,” said Dr. Michael Morelli of FMC’s agricultural products group, in a prepared statement.

“President Obama has committed EPA to regulating on the basis of sound science, and FMC is confident that a fair hearing based on sound scientific principles will prove carbofuran’s safety to the satisfaction of all.”

The USDA, all 50 secretaries of state departments of agriculture and several major growers’ associations have indicated support for the continued – though limited – use of carbofuran when no alternative products can be utilized, according to FMC.

“We continue to believe that EPA has relied on flawed science to reach its conclusions and we will look to an administrative law court to judge the merits of the science,” stated Aaron Locker, director of strategic account management for FMC.

Rod Snyder, director of public policy for the National Corn Growers Association, said the nation’s largest corn producers organization stands with FMC in the belief that tests have shown Furadan safe for the food supply.

“We’re disappointed on a couple of fronts. We feel like that after thorough review the compound is still safe for use in limited circumstances, based on the dietary risk assessments. We believe the product still can be safely used – in fact it is necessary product in some instances.

“Probably more concerning is the precedent set related to the cancellation of the food tolerance while the underlying registration remains valid and current. It could be creating a situation where the product remains registered but the residue in any crops would be illegal. Fortunately they did provide a phase-out time. Farmers had better keep record of their usage in the mean time.”

The EPA accepted FMC’s voluntary cancellation of most Furadan uses in March. The product is currently registered for use only with corn, pumpkins, potatoes, spinach grown for seed, sunflowers and pine seedlings.