Emergency authorisations granted for maize seed treatments

An impending ban on maize seed treatments has been lifted with the granting of emergency authorisations, which allow seed treated with three key products to be imported and grown in the UK next year.

The products are: bird repellent Korit, fungicide, Redigo M, and wireworm product, Force ST.

Their use as seed treatments in imported maize seed would have been illegal at the end of 2023 as part of the end of the Brexit transition agreements.

This has raised questions about the future viability of maize being grown in the UK for livestock forage or as a feedstock for anaerobic digestion (AD) plants.

“Without a suitable bird repellent, insecticide and fungicide, there’s a substantial risk that newly drilled crops could be completely wiped out by corvid grazing, or seriously hindered by insect damage and soil-borne pathogens,” explains Tim Richmond, maize manager for Limagrain Field Seeds in the UK and Ireland, which set up an industry working group to lobby the government on this issue.

Initial reluctance from regulators

Jon Myhill, an agronomist at the Maize Growers Association, which submitted the applications for the EAs, said UK regulators were initially reluctant to engage with idea of allowing imports of these treated seeds.

The association joined forces with seed breeders and other organisations to lobby the government, and eventually, a two-part solution was put in place.

“Firstly, a proposed change in the law to delay the end of the transition period, and, as an interim solution, to consider applications for emergency authorisations of these products,” Mr Myhill said.

He added: “The MGA sponsored all three applications, and have been in contact with the farming minister and the regulators at HSE/CRD throughout the process. I am delighted with the input from so many of our members in contacting their local MPs to highlight the issues.

“In the end, we were able to successfully convince policy makers of the importance of maize production to the livestock, dairy and biogas industries, and we can look forward to a vibrant maize growing industry for years to come”.

Not a permanent solution

However, the campaign doesn’t end here, Mr Richmond said: “Whilst the emergency use authorisations are a significant win for the industry, they are by no means a permanent solution.

“We are therefore continuing to lobby on behalf of all UK maize growers to secure a more sustainable solution in the form of a longer-term delay on the ban which will require a change in UK law, and will encourage the CRD (Chemicals Regulation Division) to ensure the next generation of maize seed treatments are approved at a regulatory level as quickly as possible.”