Issue 04 June/July 2018
A Spotlight on Products, Promos, Insights and More
Safe to tread
Health Canada requires all pesticides to have a defined pesticide Re-Entry Interval (REI), which is the minimum amount of time between the application of a pesticide to a crop and the time that it is safe to re-enter the field without protective clothes or equipment. The length of time needed for an REI is often correlated to the toxicity and the hazard of the product, with longer intervals required for a product with increased toxicity. This information is accessible on the label, MSDS, and Crop Production Guide. If you enter fields for a crop check and the field appears to be recently sprayed—stop! There are three questions you need to answer before you can safely enter that field:
1
Has the field been sprayed recently?
2
When was the field sprayed?
3
What products were applied?
120º
The answers to these simple questions can help you determine when you can safely re-enter that field and avoid a dangerous risk to your health and safety through exposure to a pesticide. If you have to re-enter the field before the re-entry period is up, wear protective gear to safeguard yourself from exposure to that pesticide.
110º
The owner, manager, and all of the staff of an independent retail are a team—people who work together to help drive the success of the business operation. But there is a potential risk of danger lurking for team members who spend time as agronomists and crop scouts in scouting customers’ fields. They could be entering a field and unknowingly exposing themselves to a health and safety hazard. Does your team know if it is safe to tread when they enter a customer’s field?
It all comes down to communication
Retail staff members who enter fields can stay in communication with their growers to keep track of which fields are safe to enter, and which fields could put your health at risk before the REI time restriction. In this age of ubiquitous mobile technology, almost every customer has at least one cell phone. An email, text, or even phone call takes just 30 seconds but can keep your team members safe and reduce the risk of pesticide exposure. From a producer’s point of view, they want to keep an open communication to ensure the safety of the agronomist or crop scout who is offering the vital service of field scouting. Producers also think of their agronomist as part of their farm team; the safety and well-being of a team member for both the retail and the producer is a top priority to all. A good day’s work on the farm can often be a long and busy one, but there should always be time for following safe work practices and engaging in regular, informed communication with team members. The best days of all are when all of the members of the team return safely to their own families at the end of the day.