NPC statement on an EPA cancel of aldicarb registration

The National Potato Council (NPC) is concerned by the recent decision to cancel the registration of aldicarb, a vital tool for U.S. potato growers. Aldicarb, an insecticide and nematicide produced by Bayer CropScience and sold as Temik, has been used by farmers for nearly 40 years to assist with pest control without risking human health. The decision is especially consequential for potato farmers because it is effective immediately and requires discontinued use of existing stocks after 2011. Farmers will have little opportunity to develop alternative crop protection strategy where aldicarb was a key component of their pest management program.

Despite the fact that EPA’s most recent risk assessment concluded that it no longer met its expanded food safety standards and possibly posed dietary risks, aldicarb does not pose an actual risk when used as directed. Consequently, NPC does not fully agree with the new risk assessment that led to the cancellation.

“Aldicarb has been safely applied with effective results for almost 40 years,” said John Keeling, executive vice president and CEO of the National Potato Council. “It is unfortunate that a reliable and effective tool of the potato industry will no longer be available to growers. Whenever a product is removed from the market, growers have fewer options when pests develop resistance to other pest mitigation measures. Without aldicarb growers will have fewer alternatives and the opportunity for pests to develop resistance to newer modes of action will be accelerated.”