Alcester Union & Hudsonite Online

PIERRE – The South Dakota Department of Agriculture (SDDA) has issued a crisis exemption for Avitec™ seed treatment products to protect newly planted field and sweet corn seed against consumption by ring-necked pheasants. Since the Environmental Protection Agency was unable to approve the SDDA request before corn planting, Secretary of Agriculture Bill Even chose to exercise his authority provided under federal law and issue this crisis exemption.

Pheasant populations were higher in 2007 than in any previous year since 1945. The significant number of Conservation Reserve Program acres in South Dakota, coupled with the demand for increased pheasant populations for recreational purposes and the demand for corn to meet energy needs, have resulted in increased instances where pheasant habitat and corn acres overlap.

Avitec™ is a non-lethal gut irritant for birds. When eaten, it results in a learned pattern of avoiding the treated seed.

In 2006, South Dakota State University and the South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks conducted field studies at three different sites in Eastern South Dakota using Avitec™ to gauge its effectiveness in preventing depredation of corn seed by pheasants. The results of the study showed a 73%, 56%, and 20% depredation reduction at the three sites. All three sites had been replanted due to previous depredation losses in 2005.

Replanting corn can be costly. South Dakota farmers stand to lose up to $50 per acre in replanting costs and up to 8% yield loss at harvest. Treatment with Avitec™ is another tool available to producers for minimizing the impact on this year’s corn crop. Without this product availability, the value of lost production and replanting could be as high as $77 million in South Dakota.

The Section 18 exemption is effective from April 10, 2008, to August 15, 2008.

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