Emergency use registration has been granted for an alternative insecticide — Carbine — to control lygus bugs in confection sunflowers fields in Manitoba.
Carbine, which contains flonicamid as an active ingredient, will be registered for control of lygus bugs on confection sunflowers grown in the province from July 21, 2023 until July 20, 2024.
Manitoba Agriculture, the Manitoba Crop Alliance, and FMC Canada announced the approval by the federal Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), after a label change for another insecticide — lambda-cyhalothrin — left a void in tools to manage the pest.
Lygus bugs can cause major economic damage to confection sunflowers grown for human consumption.When lygus feed on developing sunflower seeds, they cause a brown spot on the kernel and bitter taste when eaten.
As a result, sunflower processors only allow 0.5 per cent damage on farmers’ deliveries, and the economic threshold for spraying for lygus bugs is approximately one bug per nine sunflower heads.
The emergency use registration is only intended for confenction sunflowers sold in Canada or the U.S., and does not apply to oilseed sunflowers. The Manitoba Crop Alliance suggests sunflower growers contact their buyer for information on end-use restrictions.
The Manitoba Crop Alliance initiated the emergency use application, working together with Manitoba Agriculture staff, several months ago.
Lambda-cyhalothrin products, including Silencer and Matador, have been affected by a PMRA label change that removed the approval for their use on crops that end up in feed as of April 1, 2023.
The companies that make lambda-cy products have expressed hope that the PMRA will revise the label change and remove the new restrictions for the 2024 growing season.
Read more about the emergency use registration of Carbine and agronomic details, here.
