EPA granted emergency exemption for BASF’s Sercadis fungicide

Louisiana rice growers who have discovered resistant sheath blight in their production fields will have emergency access to Sercadis™ (fluxapyroxad) fungicide to fight this burgeoning threat to yields and crop quality.

The State of Louisiana received approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for emergency use of Sercadis because there are currently no other alternatives for effective control. Such Section 18 labels are granted to states where problems can be clearly identified within a specified geography, where there are no other alternatives for control and where there is a significant risk of major economic damage.

Resistant sheath blight has created these conditions in southern Louisiana. Louisiana State University’s AgCenter refers to the current outbreak of sheath blight as “the most economically significant in Louisiana rice production since the early 1970s.” Sheath blight typically infects the culms at the water line between the late tillering and joint elongation growth stages, and can progress rapidly, causing tiller lodging and collapse.

Sheath blight can spread from tiller to tiller within a rice field. Farmers commonly rotate rice with soybeans, which can also carry the disease, known in soybeans as aerial web blight.

Under the emergency exemption, Louisiana growers will be able to obtain Sercadis fungicide at specific retail locations that are near the area where resistance is identified. Supplies are limited.

"Sercadis provides an optimized formulation of a carboxamide fungicide, providing both disease control and preventive benefits in rice, while combating sheath blight with a new mode of action,” said Brianne Reeves, Technical Market Specialist, BASF.

Sercadis contains Xemium® fungicide (fluxapyroxad), a new active ingredient in the carboxamide family. Xemium also is the active ingredient in two new products—Merivon® fungicide (active ingredients: pyraclostrobin + fluxapyroxad, 1:2 ratio) and Priaxor™ fungicide (active ingredients: pyraclostrobin + fluxapyroxad, 1:1 ratio)—which recently received registration by the U.S. EPA (AgroNews 2012-05-04). Priaxor will be used primarily on row crops as well as select specialty crops, such as potatoes and tomatoes. Merivon received registration on specialty fruit crops, specifically pome fruits, such as apples and pears, and stone fruits, including cherries and peaches.