A no-charge reception hosted by FieldWatch™, Inc. on February 15, 2017 at 3:00 PM at the Varied Industries Building on the Iowa State Fairgrounds will help launch the new sensitive crop registry in Iowa. The reception is followed by an information session for applicators and interested parties. FieldWatch™ is a non-profit company that was created by Purdue University in collaboration with interested agricultural stakeholder groups. This reception and meeting will be held in conjunction with the 2017 Agribusiness Showcase & Conference (ASC) in Des Moines, IA. More information about this session is available online at http://agribizshowcase.com.
The new registry was made possible by a monetary award presented to IDALS in 2016 by the Agribusiness Association of Iowa Foundation. Donors included the Iowa Agriculture Aviation Association, Syngenta Crop Protection, Dow AgroScience, GROWMARK Foundation, Monsanto, BASF, Bayer CropScience, Iowa Wine Growers Association, Crop Production Services, Inc., Helena Chemical, and Meridian Agriculture.
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture and Land Stewardship Bill Northey encourages Iowans with pesticide sensitive crops and apiaries to register their locations using the Department’s new sensitive crop registry through FieldWatch™, Inc.
“We’re excited to offer this new directory with all of its capabilities. The mapping features, streamlined data entry, and increased accuracy of the information presented will promote better communication of sensitive site data between farmers and pesticide applicators,” Northey said. “By improving our Sensitive Crop Registry we hope to make sure Iowa continues to be a great place for all types of agriculture.”
The new registry offers two online platforms that provide state of the art mapping features. DriftWatch® is a registry site for use by producers of commercial crops sensitive to pesticides and includes the online capacity to map boundaries around production fields. BeeCheck® is a registry site for beekeepers that designates one-mile radius boundaries around apiaries. Sensitive crop producers with apiaries may enter hive locations using either the DriftWatch® or BeeCheck® registries. Along with apiary sites, half an acre or larger commercial vineyards, orchards, fruit and vegetable grow sites, nursery and Christmas tree production sites, and certified organic crops are included in the registry.
Contacts:
Questions regarding the registries can be directed to IDALS State Horticulturist, Paul Ovrom, at [email protected] or 515-242-6239
Questions regarding 2017 ASC events can be directed to [email protected] or 515-262-8323
