Author: Ricardo Bessin
Planning Unit: Entomology
Major Program: Local Food Systems
Outcome: Long-Term Outcome
Sugarcane aphid first appeared in 2015 in Kentucky and caused devastating losses to sweet sorghum the following year. Many fields were a complete loss as growers had no labeled insecticide to combat this new invasive pest. From 2017 until 2020, I petitioned the KDA to request the EPA to grant criss and emergency expemptions (FIFRA Section 18 exemptions) to use Sivanto Prime to manage sugarcane aphid on sweet sorghum in Kentucky. Several other states followed Kentucy's lead to be granted these exemptions, and during this period we relied on these exemoptiuons to produce this niche crop. . In 2016, I submitted a pesticide clearance request to the IR-4 project to conduct the necessary residue trials in order to facilitate the approval of sweet sorghum to the Sivanto Prime label. The IR-4 program aids growers by facilitating registration of pesticides and biopesticide on specialty food crops (fruit, vegetables, nuts, herbs, spices) and environmental food crops (trees, shrubs, flowers). At the 2017 IR-4 National Food Use Workshop I argued and was successful in getting this request into the top 40 nationally. The result is that IR-4 conducted the neccessary residue trials and in cooperation with Bayer Crop Science was granted approval to add sweet sorghum to the approved crops on the Sivanto label. Growers now have an effective insecticide to manage this pest on sweet sorghum, without an effective insecticide, growers would not be able to produce this crop in Kentucky.
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