PDF / 64 KB 
collectBayerNews_20080625_5276_en.pdf BayerNews_20080625_5276_en.pdf
Leverkusen, June 25, 2008 - The Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food
Safety (BVL) has now lifted the suspension of registration imposed on May 15,
2008 for insecticidal seed treatment products used in rapeseed. This means that
these products have been made available once again to farmers in Germany for
the impending sowing season.
The registrations for insecticidal seed treatment products in oilseed rape and
maize had been suspended originally in response to reports of bee losses in the
south of Baden-Württemberg at the beginning of May, which were linked to the
sowing of maize seeds treated with the seed treatment active ingredient
Clothianidin from Bayer CropScience. As a precaution this official measure
extended not only on maize seeds but also on rapeseeds.
After intensive technical discussions and consultations at expert level, the
BVL took the view that the treatment of rapeseed with insecticidal seed
treatment products as also the sowing of the treated seeds, can be classified
as safe to the environment. The documents required by the BVL and made
available by Bayer CropScience had been scrutinized closely beforehand by BVL
experts and submitted to a renewed risk assessment.
"Operator safety and environmental protection are top priority issues for us.
The decision of the BVL to lift the precautionary suspension provides definite
confirmation of the safety of our seed treatment products," said Dr. Hans-Josef
Diehl, Head of Development and Registration at Bayer CropScience Germany.
The decision of the BVL is of major importance particularly for agriculture and
the seed industry. Rapeseed sowing is due to take place very shortly. Experts
had feared massive harvest losses as a result of pest infestation if the ban on
the sowing of treated seed had been prolonged.
With a view to securing renewed registration for use in maize, Bayer
CropScience is working closely together with all groups concerned in the seed
production and machinery industries in a search for solutions. The aim is to
ensure high seed dressing quality for seeds and to optimize sowing technology.
"At the present time there is, in fact, no alternative method which is more
expedient, practicable or environmentally compatible than seed treatments",
said Dr. Hans-Josef Diehl.
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health
care, nutrition and high-tech materials. Bayer CropScience AG, a subsidiary of
Bayer AG with annual sales of about EUR 5.8 billion (2007), is one of the world'
s leading innovative crop science companies in the areas of crop protection,
non-agricultural pest control, seeds and plant biotechnology. The company
offers an outstanding range of products and extensive service backup for
modern, sustainable agriculture and for non-agricultural applications. Bayer
CropScience has a global workforce of about 17,800 and is represented in more
than 120 countries. This and further news are available at:
www.newsroom.bayercropscience.com.
