U.S. EPA finalizing rule to revise crop grouping

The U.S. EPA is finalizing a rule to revise the pesticide crop grouping regulations that allow the establishment of tolerances for groups of related crops. The final rule will expand the number of crops that can have tolerances established and thus will allow minor use growers a wider choice of pest control tools including lower-risk pesticides, to be used on minor crops, both domestically and in countries that import food to the United States.

Crop groupings allow petitioners to request a tolerance for multiple related commodities based on research data on a representative crop. This is the fourth in a series of revisions to the crop groupings. The final rule revises the existing leafy vegetable (except brassica) and brassica vegetable crop groups, as well as establish new crop groups, including: stalk, stem and leaf petioles; tropical fruit, inedible peel; and tropical fruit, and edible peel.

This final crop group rule is in response to several petitions submitted to EPA by U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Interregional Research Project Number 4 (IR-4). IR-4 helps growers by conducting research to support tolerances for products and crops that pesticide companies do not find profitable enough to support investment in the research.