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The Environmental Protection Agency announced on Wednesday, August 8, that after 21 years of reviewing data on the popular herbicide 2,4-D, the product was shown to have no cancer-causing
effects.
EPA released its decision that 2,4-D would not be the subject of Special Review, a process that is initiated when a pesticide is thought to cause “unreasonable adverse effects to people
or the environment,” according to EPA documents.
Jack Dutra (Doo-trah), the executive director of the Industry Task Force II on 2,4-D Research Data, explains the EPA’s findings and what this decision means for farmers:
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Dutra1.mp3
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“Essentially what their findings were in looking at all the data, there is no evidence or correlation between 2,4-D and any human carcinogenic effects. They haven’t
labeled it as a non-carcinogen, but it does not cause carcinogenic effects in humans.”
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Dutra2.mp3;
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“For the Ag industry, what that means is that the product, which is the most widely used in the world for weed control or with weed control products, that they can
put out the product as labeled and feel safe that there are no health problems as a result of them using 2,4-D in their herbicide or mixes.”
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Dutra3.mp3
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“The last study was a NAPIAP study, and I think it is eight years old or more, and at that time the effect on U.S. agriculture alone would have been an additional
1.7 billion dollars in annual expense for raising the food crops where the product is used.”
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Dutra4.mp3
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“We are very happy with this determination because 2,4-D is an essential herbicide for U.S. growers of a variety of important crops, including wheat, corn, rice,
soybeans, potatoes, sugar cane and other stone fruits and nuts. In the reregistration, we did not lose a single use of the product.”
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For those who want more information on this EPA decision or on 2,4-D, Dutra offers two options:
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Dutra5.mp3
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We have a web site at w-w-w-dot-2-4-D-dot-org. A lot of data is there, backgrounders, public studies, EPA RED documents, a lot of that information is there. If they do not
have internet access, but have a phone, they can call me at 1-800-3-4-5-5-1-0-9 and I will be happy to get copies or print off copies and have them sent to them.”
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