A valuable tool for managing insect pests, such as flea beetles and grasshoppers, is back in the toolbox for 2025.
As reported earlier this month, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has effectively lifted a two-year ban on spraying insecticides containing lambda-cyhalothrin on crops that could be destined for livestock feed.
Lambda-cy products, sold under trade names such as Matador, Silencer, and Voliam Xpress, were recalled from retailers in late 2022 after the PMRA revised their label, cancelling approval for crops sprayed with lambda-cy to be used as feed.
Following the PMRA’s latest label update, growers will once again be able to purchase lambda-cy products for the 2025 growing season.
“This is a good news story for canola, and for growers — a science-based decision and a tool that is really key for growers,” says Ian Epp, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada, who also serves as the council’s lead on maximum residue limit and regulatory issues.
While the re-instatement process was slower than growers and industry would have liked, in the end, the PMRA adhered to a science-based process in evaluating new data and making its decision, acknowledges Epp.
Looking ahead, he says the industry is seeking more clarity on where the PMRA sees potential data gaps as it reviews crop protection products.
“From an industry perspective, it’d be nice to be able to generate data or move a little quicker to fill these gaps. So we’re always looking, from a canola perspective or an industry perspective, what’s coming down the pipeline? How do we get ahead of this? Is there a data gap? It’d be nice to have more clarity on that, but this is the outcome we were looking for,” he says.
The federal government launched a transformation process for the PMRA in 2021, which has included some measures that have raised concerns within the agricultural sector about political influence over scientific decisions. Last week, CropLife Canada urged the government to halt its transformation agenda, citing increased regulatory burdens and costs, particularly in the midst of trade tensions with the U.S.
Watch/listen to the Canola Council’s Ian Epp discuss the return of lambda-cy to the toolbox for 2025, recorded at the CropConnect Conference in Winnipeg. We chatted following a presentation by Epp and colleagues from Pulse Canada and Cereals Canada on the potential impact of crop protection products on market access and the 2025 Keep It Clean campaign:
Related: Canola School: Planning for flea beetles and grasshoppers, without lambda-cy
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