Pesticide Risk Reduction in Soybean Production

Study by Darren Robinson and Mike Gladstone (University of Guelph - Ridgetown Campus), and Andy Hammermeister (Organic Agriculture Centre of Canada)

Introduction

In field crop production, farmers may be hesitant to move to organic or other reduced pesticide practices due to challenges in weed management. Soybeans in particular can be a difficult crop to grow during the transition phase: weed pressure often increases in years two and three of transition. The priorities in weed management for soybeans are weed resistance in zero-till systems and the need for a systems approach to weed management.

Conclusions

Soybean is a difficult crop to grow during the transition phase from conventional to organic. These trials showed that with the exception of fields with low weed infestation, soybean grown during the transition phase will likely require very high input costs. If a price-premium can be guaranteed for 'transitionally-grown' soybean, the additional cost might be justified. The high price of soybean in the current market also provides an excellent opportunity for transition to organic while reducing financial risk.

It is important to remember that the purpose of this research was to demonstrate to growers the potential disadvantages of growing soybean during the transition phase rather than the development of weed management practices.

Environmental Impact Quotients (EIQs) for the Integrated Weed Management and Conventional fields were always higher than for organic soybean production, but varied by the degree of weed infestation.

Field days offered good opportunities for growers to observe differences between low, moderate and high weed infestations and the likely outcome of growing soybean during the transition phase. Two growers who participated in the trial have expressed interest in transitioning a portion of their farm into organic production.

Full report at http://www.oacc.info/Docs/TechnicalBulletins08/TechnicalBulletin36web_risk.pdf

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