Chair of American Seed Trade Assn confident EPA will re-register dicamba products

Date:10-23-2020

The chairman of the American Seed Trade Association is confident about the re-registration of two dicamba products despite the EPA missing its target of a mid-October decision.

John Latham, the president of Iowa-based Latham Hi-Tech Seeds, tells Brownfield growers should expect to have Bayer's Xtendimax and BASF's Engenia herbicides at their disposal next year.

"Everybody that I talk to feels really confident that they are going to get the registration, so I'd say it's highly probable. Now, who knows? Crazier things have happened. But I do think there's a really good chance."

Administrator Andrew Wheeler has said numerous times EPA would make an official announcement on dicamba by the middle of October.

Latham says the delay is frustrating as farmers plan for 2021.

"It's not fun for anybody to be waiting, (but) I guess it's probably not as bad as it was in June when the 9th Circuit Court kind of threw us a major curveball and had a stay on spraying dicamba. So at least we're going to have plenty of time for growers to make decisions before next spring."

Latham says while he still feels good about EPA approving the use of dicamba for next year, he is concerned about the 9th Circuit Court interfering again.