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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is issuing an amendment to the existing stocks provisions for the Kaizen Technologies LLC (Kaizen) chlorpyrifos end-use product “Bifenchlor” to allow for sale, distribution, and use for a limited time. The 2023 court decision vacating the 2021 chlorpyrifos tolerance revocation rule reinstated tolerances for products that registrants had previously voluntarily cancelled. Granting this amendment ensures greater consistency across chlorpyrifos products. Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate insecticide that has been used for many food crops, including growing soybeans, fruit and nut trees, broccoli, cauliflower, and other row...

On June 23, 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed interim registration review and decision for dimethoate pesticide as required by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, 7 U.S.C. 136a(g). EPA published a notice of its interim decision for public review and comment. As set forth in its interim decision, EPA determined that the benefits of the use of dimethoate on crops such as corn, soybeans, and wheat, were low. As such, EPA proposes to remove dimethoate label registration for use of the product on those crops....

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released its final Herbicide Strategy, which is designed to protect over 900 federally endangered and threatened (listed) species from the potential impacts of herbicide. The EPA indicated it will use the strategy to identify measures to reduce the amount of herbicide exposure to these species when it registers new herbicides and when it reevaluates registered herbicides under a process called registration review. The agency says the final strategy incorporates a wide range of stakeholder input that will protect species but also preserve a wide range of...

Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) joined nearly 200 organizations in sending a letter to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requesting the agency engage with stakeholders to discuss improvements to its Endangered Species Act risk assessment process for pesticides. The letter highlights why EPA has both a responsibility and would benefit from using more refined risk assessment processes, identifies potential improvements that could be used, and calls on the agency to expeditiously engage with stakeholders to improve its ESA risk assessment processes. Under the ESA, all federal agencies, including EPA, are...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing an update to the level at which atrazine is expected to adversely affect aquatic plants. The new revised atrazine concentration of 9.7 micrograms per liter (µg/L), which was derived following an August 2023 peer review, will be used to develop a revised regulatory decision on the degree at which atrazine affects aquatic plants as well as fish, invertebrates and amphibians. The level at which atrazine is expected to adversely affect aquatic plants is also known as the concentration-equivalent level of concern or CE-LOC....

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today announced the publication of a heat standard proposal that would require employers to develop an injury and illness prevention plan to control heat hazards in workplaces affected by excessive heat. “The nation’s first-ever federal safety standard addressing excessive heat in the workplace,” would apply to all employers conducting outdoor and indoor work in all general industry, construction, maritime, and agriculture sectors where OSHA has jurisdiction. Excluded from the rule would be short-duration employee exposures to heat, emergency response activities, work at indoor sites kept below 80°F,...

Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) joined more than 150 national, state and regional organizations in urging United States House of Representatives leaders to pass a bipartisan Farm Bill this congress before the legislative process begins anew in the 119th Congress. The letter explains the need of millions of Americans who rely daily on the provisions of the Farm Bill to produce food, fiber and fuel. The aforementioned organizations who signed the letter expressed the need for the Farm Bill's updated policies, provisions, initiatives and critical funding supporting the group's collective interests. VIEW...

On June 18, in response to an action by Governor Laura Kelly, the Kansas legislature convened a one-day Special Session where two matters were debated. The first was a comprehensive tax relief bill. The second item was approval of a Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) bonding package intended to incentivize the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals sports franchises to come to Kansas City, Kan. Both bills were passed, and the governor has indicated she will sign the bills into law. COMPREHENSIVE TAX RELIEF – Senate Bill 1: The House and Senate voted overwhelmingly to pass...

Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association (KARA) has submitted a comment to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) detailing the critical need for access to dicamba products, particularly a proposed dicamba herbicide developed by BASF. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has received an application from BASF for a new product containing the currently registered active ingredient dicamba. The product proposal includes over-the-top application of dicamba on both dicamba-tolerant cotton and soybeans. Because the application involves a new use pattern for dicamba, the Agency is providing a 30-day public comment period on the...

Kansas Agribusiness Retailers Association’s (KARA) scholarship committee reviewed more than 100 applications and awarded nearly $10,000 in financial aid to seven of the state’s high school graduating seniors and current college students for the 2024-25 academic year. “We are proud each year to assist local students in pursuing their academic aspirations,” KARA’s president and CEO Ron Seeber said. “Our board of directors, scholarship committee and overall membership congratulate and wish nothing but the best for this year’s recipients as we collectively look forward to their future contributions to our industry.” Each year,...

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