12/05/06 Paraquat, wheat and the Japanese

Farm and Ranch December 5, 2006 In September the Environmental Protection Agency approved a petition from Syngenta for a new use of paraquat as a pre-harvest desiccant applied to wheat. Tom Mick, CEO of the Washington Wheat Commission says the Japanese have expressed concerns about this potential new use. Mick: "The Japanese are very concerned about this because 30, 40 years ago there was a number of suicides in Japan where the victims used paraquat. So they have a very tight tolerance to a level that nobody could meet." Mick says this pre-harvest use of paraquat would have little application in the Pacific Northwest and would primarily be of value for spring wheat and durum in the Plains. However, the Japanese point out that any residues on wheat imported into Japan which exceed Japanese tolerances could result in suspension of wheat imports from the United States. Japan of course has been a steadfast buyer of U.S. and Pacific Northwest wheat. U.S. Wheat Associates hosted a delegation of Japanese government, flour milling and grain trade officials last month to discuss the discrepancy between the U.S. and Japan in their minimum risk level for paraquat. The Japanese encouraged a revocation of the pre-harvest use on wheat. U.S. Wheat says the new use meets a need and revocation would set a bad precedent. Syngenta meanwhile agreed to withhold the new use from their paraquat label until export issues and tolerance levels can be resolved. I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.