Organisations continue to fight for asulam despite ban

The NFU will fight for an emergency authorisation to continue the use of asulam after 2012 after the European Union agreed to ban the chemical which is used to control bracken in the UK.

UK farming unions had won a temporary reprieve for the product, marketed in this country as Asulox, earlier this summer. However, at yesterday’s EU Appeal Committee meeting, there was not enough support from other Member States to overturn a ban under the EU’s pesticides regulation.

NFU head of policy services Andrew Clark said: "We have worked hard to get the European Commission to see common sense on this but we have fallen just short.

"The loss of asulam, the only product approved for aerial application, will lead to serious bracken control problems.

"Unchecked bracken growth gives rise to a whole host of difficulties including negative impacts on biodiversity as well as public and animal health issues arising from the toxicity and carcinogenic nature of the plant and the fact that it can act as a habitat for disease carrying ticks.

"We have already been in contact with the UK Government on this and will now discuss an ’emergency authorisation’ to continue the use of asulam for an unspecified time period, which would give us breathing space to find a workable solution in the long term.

"The UK Chemicals Regulation Directorate told us they would consider any applications for emergency authorisation on a case-by-case basis."