National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) | October 27, 1999 | Press Release
ST. LOUIS - The National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) has a message for anyone who plants corn: Plant a non-Bt refuge if you plant Bt corn.
To ensure that growers understand the importance of planting a refuge, NCGA is launching a major educational program, which was developed in cooperation with seed companies and consultation with leading land grant universities.
"Insect resistance management "IRM" is a term that everyone should know, and planting a non-Bt refuge is something that everyone who purchases Bt corn is required to do," said NCGA President Lynn Jensen, a grower from Lake Preston, S.D. "NCGA, in conjunction with universities and seed companies, is committed to ensuring that growers understand the importance of planting a refuge."
Planting a portion of their corn acreage in non-Bt hybrids is considered to be the single most important step growers can take to prevent insects from developing resistance to corn that has been genetically enhanced to protect itself against European corn borer and certain other corn pests. Refuges provide a population of susceptible insects to mate with any rare resistant insects that might survive exposure to Bt corn, which contains a protein from the soil organism Bacillus thuringiensis.
"We want everyone to know that planting a refuge is a requirement when you purchase Bt seed. We can avoid more government regulation by exercising good stewardship on our own. If we don't use the technology responsibly, we could lose the benefits of Bt protection," Jensen said NCGA has developed a new logo to increase grower awareness of insect resistance management. In addition, the association plans to communicate the IRM message at grower meetings and educational sessions and in communications to members. NCGA will license the logo to seed companies to use in their communications with customers, and the materials that are being developed will be available to universities as a tool for expanding awareness through extension and other programs.
"Growers will be seeing a lot of the logo in the coming weeks, and they'll be hearing a lot about the importance of planting a refuge," Jensen said. "Producers understand the need to manage against weed resistance, and managing to prevent insect resistance is just as important" for the bottom line, for the environment and for the next generation of farmers."
The logo, which was tested with farmer focus groups, features a silhouette of a farmer and a youth, emphasizing the need to preserve the technology for the next generation. The design includes horizontal lines symbolizing corn rows. A lightly shaded section of lines symbolizes the non-Bt refuge. The words "Insect Resistance Management: Planting Refuges, Protecting Technology," emphasize the key message.
Jensen said preserving Bt technology for years to come is in line with other stewardship practices that farmers have adopted, such as soil conservation and proper use of chemicals. "These practices are good for agriculture and the environment, and they all require individual responsibility. So does insect resistance management. When growers are informed, it's been demonstrated that they do the right thing, on their own farm."
The communications plan resulted from an IRM meeting this summer in Chicago of growers, educators, environmentalists, regulators and seed companies. After that meeting, NCGA took the initiative to develop a plan to ensure grower awareness.
NCGA consulted with a number of land grant universities, and the various seed companies that produce insect-protected corn actively participated in developing the plan. "All agree there should be a unified commitment to responsible stewardship of Bt technology," said NCGA CEO Chris Wehrman.
