States ban dicamba herbicide

In response to escalating concerns about alleged misuse of the herbicide dicamba, Arkansas and Missouri have halted the sale and use of the chemical. The states received hundreds of complaints this year from farmers who say dicamba spray drifted onto their property from neighboring fields and damaged their soybeans that have not been genetically engineered to tolerate the herbicide. On July 7, the Missouri Department of Agriculture banned the sale and use of all dicamba products labeled for agricultural use in the state, effective immediately. Also on July 7, the Arkansas Agriculture Department halted the sale of dicamba for agricultural use in that state for 120 days, effective on July 11. Chris Chinn, director of the Missouri Department of Agriculture, says Missouri’s ban will be lifted once companies, the state, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency agree to new restrictions to be printed on dicamba product labels. Dicamba (3,6-dichloro-2-methoxybenzoic acid)