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INDUSTRY TASK FORCE II ON2,4-D RESEARCH DATA |
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Welcome to the Industry Task Force II on 2,4-D Research Data Web Site
2,4-D, a member of the chlorophenoxy family of herbicides, was the first successful selective herbicide developed. It was introduced in 1946 and rapidly became the most widely used herbicide in the world. A selective herbicide is one that controls weeds in a crop without damaging that crop. After 60 years of use, 2,4-D is still the third most widely used herbicide in the United States and Canada, and the most widely used worldwide. Its major uses in agriculture are on wheat and small grains, sorghum, corn, rice, sugar cane, low-till soybeans, rangeland, and pasture. It is also used on rights-of-way, roadsides, non-crop areas, forestry, lawn and turf care, and on aquatic weeds. A 1996 U.S. Department of Agriculture study concluded that, should 2,4-D no longer be available, the cost to growers and other users, in terms of higher weed control expenses, and to consumers, in the form of higher food and fiber prices, would total $1,683 million annually in the U.S. alone. The study also reviewed the 2,4-D epidemiology and toxicology data packages and concluded (page 2) that after several decades of extensive use, “The phenoxy herbicides are low in toxicity to humans and animals (1,9). No scientifically documented health risks, either acute or chronic, exist from the approved uses of the phenoxy herbicides.” A recently completed study entitled "Assessment of the Economic and Related Benefits to Canada of Phenoxy Herbicides" found that weed control costs to barley and wheat producers would increase by a factor of 2.9 times if the three phenoxy herbicides - 2,4-D, MCPA and mecoprop - were not available to Canadian farmers. A worldwide study of the benefits of 2,4-D measured in terms of increased food production and lower food prices has never been done, although those benefits are known to be enormous. 2,4-D has for the past sixty years, been a major tool in the continuing fight to reduce world hunger. According to one recent expert review (Dost 2003), “2,4-D is possibly the most extensively researched of all pesticides, and the data have been examined by an unusual number of advisory committees and work groups.” The Industry Task Force II on 2,4-D Research Data was formed, as allowed under U.S. pesticide laws, to fund the nearly $30 million in new research required by both the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Canadian Pest Management Regulatory Agency under their current pesticide re-registration/re-evaluation programs. The Task Force does not conduct any research, it simply must fund it. The actual research, under both U.S. and Canadian law, must be done by GLP qualified laboratories (see “Industry Research and GLP” under backgrounders). The current companies making up the Task Force are Dow AgroSciences (U.S.), Nufarm Ltd. (Australia) and Agro-Gor Corp., a U.S. corporation jointly owned by Atanor, S.A. (Argentina) and PBI-Gordon Corp. (U.S.). The information at this site is offered as a public service of the Industry Task Force II on 2,4-D Research Data. It is not intended to alter or replace the advertising, claims, warranties or product-specific labeling of any member company. Questions concerning a specific 2,4-D product should be directed to its manufacturer or distributor. As with any pesticide, read the product's label and labeling before using the product. Use of a product inconsistent with its labeling is a violation of federal law. Thank you.
INDUSTRY TASK FORCE II ON 2,4-D RESEARCH DATA Information Line: U.S. and Canada (800) 345-5109
Page updated Thursday, January 10, 2008 Site updated Thursday, April 10, 2008 Site Maintained by R. Rhoades |
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