Arysta LifeScience has announced that the U.S. EPA has granted an extension to its existing Experimental Use Permit for MIDAS. The permit will now be effective until August 31, 2008. The EPA also approved a first of its kind EUP in California designed to reduce farm chemical emissions.
MIDAS is a broad-spectrum fumigant that effectively controls a broad range of soil-borne diseases, nematodes, weed seeds and insects that threaten high-value crops such as ornamentals, strawberries, fresh market tomatoes, peppers and turf.
The California trial will be on 30 acres of strawberries, tomatoes, peppers and ornamentals in the South Coast, Imperial, Ventura/Oxnard, Santa Maria, Watsonville and Central Valley areas.
Arysta will use this trial to demonstrate that the use of MIDAS combined with highly retentive films and/or Symmetry, patented application technology, can reduce volatile organic compound production and fumigant emissions. Symmetry, application technology developed by Arysta, mounts easily to existing equipment and is being reviewed for its ability to reduce fumigant rates per acre and increase worker safety without reducing fumigant effectiveness.
The product has been in use under a EUP in Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia since 2006. The company is evaluating efficacy, market yields and economic comparisons across several crops during this program. Trials are also underway in many countries including Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Morocco, South Africa, Israel, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Brazil, Mexico and Chile.
More information is at: www.arystalifescience.com.