E-Delivery

that it has access to the most up-to-date and accurate data available before making any decisions. HIGHER EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL STATUS IN AGRICULTURE Those employed in the agricultural sector understand that agrology is a profession that encompasses fields such as food produc on, food safety, bioresource health and environmental quality, among others. A Professional Agrologist (P.Ag.) or agronome (agr) works conscien ously to address issues within an area of specializa on in an objec ve, competent and ethical manner. This vibrant profession requires a commitment to con nuing educa on through an ongoing process of professional development. In addi on, Canada's eight facul es of agriculture and food are accredited to ensure that graduates from these facul es meet the academic and registra on requirements established by various provincial ins tutes of agrologists and l'Ordre des agronomes du Québec. Many of those working in the Canadian agricultural sector are graduates of accredited agricultural programs and may also work as Professional Agrologists or agronomes – which raises an important ques on: Does the PMRA have an adequate supply of graduates of Canada's facul es of agriculture and food, and a sufficient number of Professional Agrologists or agronomes on staff to allow for a comprehensive understanding of the complexi es of Canada's agricultural sector? THE CONTROL OF WIREWORMS IN CANADA Lindane was one the most effec ve treatments for the control of wireworms in Canada, but is no longer registered for use. This ac ve ingredient killed 65 to 70% of the resident wireworm larvae and over 85% of new neonate larvae that were produced later in the season – effec vely knocking back wireworm popula ons for three years. The neonico noid insec cides replaced lindane, but these ac ve ingredients do not have the capacity to kill many resident larvae – allowing the larvae to survive and to recover fully by mid- summer. Then in early- to mid-summer, new neonate wireworms hatch and survive the treatment as well. This leaves large popula ons of wireworms in the field for the following season and leads to an increase in wireworm popula ons over me. Many Canadian farmers have no ced that wireworms have become much more prevalent since the loss of lindane. Why have US producers not voiced the same concerns about lack of control of wireworms? Part of the reason may be due to the disappearance of pest management tools from Canadian producers' toolboxes at a faster pace than that of their US compe tors. As examples, Counter® (terbufos), Furadan® (carbofuran) and Lorsban® 4E (chlorpyrifos) were once used extensively for the control of wireworms in a range of Canadian crops. In the US, 22 ac ve ingredients are registered currently for wireworm management, whereas Canadian producers have access to only three of these ac ve ingredients (Figure 1). In Canada, these three ac ve ingredients are available in 21 different product formula ons – but all have the same mode-of-ac on and are in Insec cide Resistance Ac on Commi ee (IRAC) Group 4A. US producers, on the other hand, have access to 22 ac ve ingredients with six dis nct modes-of- ac on available in 131 products. Nine of the ac ve ingredients available in the US are in IRAC Group 1, one is in Group 2, seven are in Group 3, three are in Group 4, one is in Group 6 and one is a biological product that is not part of any specific group. Con nued from Page 20 2 2

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