PORTAGEVILLE, Mo. - State officials, ag-scientists and seed company representatives met with about 100 farmers following alleged widespread misuse of an herbicide causing damage to thousands of acres of crops this growing season in Southeast Missouri.
During a "Dicamba Forum" at the Fisher Delta Research Center in Portageville on Friday those in attendance received more information on the extent of damage and the causes of now 119 complaints of herbicide drift received since June 22 in New Madrid, Pemiscot, Dunklin and Stoddard counties.
Paul Bailey, administrator of the Missouri Department of Agriculture's Bureau of Pesticide Control, said more than 39,000 acres of soybeans are exhibiting damage linked to herbicide drift. Also damaged are 3,000 tomato plants, 1,000 acres of cotton, 700 acres of peaches, 200 acres of peanuts, 32 acres of watermelon and 26 acres of cantaloupe.
"And numerous residential gardens, and lawns," Bailey said. "We have taken 119 complaints, there are not many of us who have had a short day. We have almost all of our staff down here in the Bootheel in these four counties working and we only have a total of eight field staff."
Monsanto Co. this spring released a line of Xtend seeds genetically modified to resist dicamba, an herbicide effective in combating pigweed, a weed that is proliferate in soybean fields in the Midwest. However, dicamba is not regulator approved for over the top of crop applications.
A low volatility form of dicamba-based herbicide was expected to receive EPA approval this spring as well, but did not. Seemingly, based on the damage reports and the magnitude of the investigation, many farmers used dicamba anyway, and in an older more volatile form.
Monsanto says the company released the seed line due to high demand -- the EU and China this year approved import of Xtend products making them attractive to U.S. growers -- and that farmers could have used other, approved, herbicides with those seed lines.
"We have been developing these products for several years, and over the course we have seen great demand from our growers to get the leading genetics and germ plasm that comes with these varieties in RoundupReady 2 Xtend soybeans and Bollguard 2 XtendFlex cotton," said Monsanto spokesperson Kyel Richard.
"Last year in cotton we saw tremendous demand from growers to have the opportunity to use glyphosate and glufosinate over the top. So, it presented a tremendous opportunity to those growers even without dicamba," he said.
However, some area farmers are now questioning the seed companies' decision. It was said at the meeting that insurance will not pay claims when illegal applications are made due those incidents falling under the purview of regulatory authorities.
Bill Bader of Bader Peach Farms of Campbell, Missouri, said this is the second year in a row his orchard suffered chemical drift damage. In 2015, the orchard lost $1.5 million following an investigation that detected small amounts of dicamba.
"We had a drift last year about April 11, and it took about 50 percent of the crop," Bader said. "The insurance company came out and pulled samples and found Roundup, 2-4-D and found dicamba. They said since the pilot had sprayed dicamba, they were amending the claim."
Bader says this year about 40-percent of his crop is damaged and many trees are dying. He hopes that farmers can start working together to combat the problems associated with illegal applications and seed companies will practice better corporate responsibility.
"We have got to work together as farmers and solve this problem," he said. "We need this 21st century technology. My complaint is why didn't these companies come out with a formulation and have it approved before they came out with these seeds."
University of Missouri ag-specialists during the meeting presented a number of other factors that may have also contributed to the unusually high number of complaints.
Some of those included improper boom height, applications made during days when wind speeds exceeded recommended limits, improper equipment cleaning and temperature inversion -- when cool air is trapped below warm and droplets of chemicals trapped in the cool layer spread erratically due temperature differences.
"There were a combination of environmental factors that didn't make this any better," said UM weed specialist Kevin Bradley. "All those things are adding up to the significance of what happened this year."
The new Xtend technology may itself be in jeopardy due the illegal applications of the older more volatile dicamba products. The new herbicides designed for Xtend technology are under EPA review and expected to be approved this fall.
"By using the older formulation irresponsibly and illegally have we jeopardized the potential registration of the new ones? I would have to say yup, yup. I have gotten calls from Washington D.C. and they have asked what the heck is going on out there," Bradley said.
When the investigation is complete -- no timetable was provided -- individuals who used dicamba in a manner inconsistent with its label could face fines of up to $1,000 per violation. The fine was an area of contention for some farmers, who said some large growers would just pay it and continue bad practices.
State Rep. Don Rone, R-Portageville, attended the Friday meeting, saying he will introduce legislation in January to increase the fine to $10,000 for drift violations when products are used in an illegal manner. He said he would attempt to fast track the bill so it will be in effect next growing season.