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KDA lifts wheat embargo on south central Kansas fieldsBy Doug Rich and Jennifer M. Latzke
Farmers in south central Kansas had a bit of good news June 25. Results of fungicide residue testing conducted by the Kansas Department of Agriculture showed "no detectable traces of fungicide" on suspect wheat from fields in Butler, Cowley, Harper, Kingman, Reno, Sedgwick, and Sumner counties. The story began June 23, as the KDA was reviewing random spot checks of records from commercial agricultural chemical applicators. Several records showed late applications of the fungicide Quilt on fields in south central, central and northwestern Kansas between May 13 and 21. Quilt, a Syngenta product, is used by farmers to control leaf and stem rust; powdery mildew; and tan spot. Its active ingredients azoxystrobin and propiconazole have established residue tolerance levels from FDA and EPA. The late applications meant farmers could inadvertently harvest the wheat before the 45-day window between application and harvest was completed, June 27 to July 5. If so, there was a potential for higher than allowable residue levels on the wheat for human consumption. Once the KDA found out, it requested that the Kansas Department of Health and Environment place the embargo on the wheat and the fields in question just as a measure of protection until tests could determine the residue levels in the wheat. Farmers had already begun harvesting the fields as early as June 21. Due to the importance of the matter, KDA employees hand delivered embargoes to farmers and three elevators in south central Kansas on June 23. The embargo, which covered 1,545 acres in south central Kansas, stopped harvest of suspected fields; kept affected grain from moving from facilities; and kept grain from being commingled with other grain until tests could be conclusive. Three of the fields were harvested before the farmers had been contacted. KDHE issued the embargo at the elevators that took the wheat, though, and they were able to confine the grain to separate bins. On June 25, test results on the 20 wheat fields and the three grain elevators in south central Kansas showed "no detectable traces of fungicide residue," according to a release from the KDA. "This is good news for the affected farmers and for the Kansas wheat industry," said Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Adrian Polansky. Precautionary measures "We were looking at when harvest was going to take place and then when the fungicide was applied," Lisa Taylor, public information officer with the Kansas Department of Agriculture, said. "There is a 45-day pre-harvest interval and we were certain there were some that simply were not going to meet it. In consultation with EPA and FDA we decided that the safest course of action was to test the grain and verify that everything is below tolerance. Then make that information public. "It all happened very quickly and we had to make a decision and we decided to go with the embargo," Taylor said. Secretary of Agriculture Adrian Polansky emphasized that the actions were precautionary to protect the integrity of Kansas wheat. "We chose this course to minimize economic harm to Kansas farmers while we verify that residue levels are what they need to be," Polansky said. In the course of the investigation, KDA also requested that the KDHE also embargo wheat in several counties in northern Kansas, including nearly 6,000 acres of wheat in: Ellis, Gove, Jefferson, Logan, Rawlings, Sheridan, Thomas, Trego and Jefferson counties. Samples have been collected from fields in northwest Kansas, where Quilt applications were documented as late as the first week of June. Test results were not known as of press time June 26. "Protecting the integrity of the Kansas wheat crop and the reputation of our state as a provider of wheat to the world is of utmost importance," said Dusti Fritz, Kansas Wheat chief executive officer. "We feel confident that a limited number of wheat fields in northwest Kansas, also under investigation, will yield the same good results." Elevators affected Fortunately for producers and elevator managers, it only took two days for the wheat samples to be tested. Terry Kohler, general manager of the Farmers Cooperative Elevator Co., Garden Plain, Kan., released a statement to the press regarding the situation June 24. His was one of the three elevators in question. "The Farmers Cooperative Elevator Company of Garden Plain, Kan., was notified early this afternoon by the Kansas State Board of Agriculture that we had received two separate truckloads of wheat, or 1,391 bushels, on Saturday, June 21, after 6 p.m., from one particular farmer in the area," according to Kohler's statement. "We have learned that this wheat was harvested prior to the restricted harvest period as per the specific label as stated on the fungicide treatment. "As soon as we were made aware of this situation, we took immediate steps to confine the referenced wheat to a single bin. This bin, which is located in Garden Plain and has a capacity of 30,000 bushels, will be sampled and sealed until the matter is resolved," Kohler said. Kohler's statement went on to say that the single embargoed bin at the facility will not affect routine harvest operations, and that the cooperative remains open and is accepting harvested grain as usual. Other elevators reportedly affected by this embargo include Scoular Grain, Wellington, and ADM, Hutchinson. Calls to Scoular Grain were not returned as of press time. Todd Harman, merchandising manager of ADM in Hutchinson, referred reporters to ADM's corporate offices for comment. ADM's corporate response was that the company could confirm that it is cooperating with the Kansas Department of Agriculture, and that it is still accepting grain deliveries. There was no further comment beyond that. Rust, weather may be to blame Record-setting wheat prices and wet weather in the central and south central Kansas fields may have been the impetus for farmers to late-apply the fungicide. In central and south central Kansas, farmers have historically fought different varieties of rust in their wheat crops. Low wheat prices meant farmers could not justify an expensive aerial foliar application of fungicide to control rusts. Now, with record-setting wheat prices, farmers have been more willing to spend the extra money on chemical applications to ensure they have a crop to market. Additionally the condition of the wheat crop in the area was behind normal, and wet weather conditions caused a more threatening rust situation. Weather may have also affected the application timetable. The results from the south central Kansas wheat showed just how effective the waiting period is to ensure that chemical residues are at acceptable levels at harvest, Polansky said. "I expect we will find similar results from samples we collected in other parts of the state." "We've been consulting with EPA and FDA, and I feel confident we're doing the right thing," Polansky said. "As the nation's leading wheat producing state, it's important we do what we can to protect the reputation and integrity of our wheat supply."
Doug Rich can be reached by phone at 785-749-5304, or by e-mail at richhpj@aol.com. Jennifer M. Latzke can be reached by phone at 620-227-1807, or by e-mail at jlatzke@hpj.com. AP and wire reports contributed to this story. 6/30/08 Date: 6/26/08 Advertisement
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