Syngenta Thrive - 4Q/2013 - 10

ASK THE EXPERTS

The Full
Treatment
When it comes to safe, effective
seed treatment stewardship, there
are no shortcuts.

Treated corn seed

Treated soybean seed

Q. Why is seed treatment stewardship so important?
A. To appreciate why seed treatment stewardship is important, it’s
critical to understand why the seed treatment itself has become
such an essential component of growing productive crops. Seed
treatments provide an effective, targeted way to place crop
protection products, dyes, polymers and other technologies
directly on the seed. They protect the seed from diseases, insects,
nematodes and other pests that threaten crop yield and quality at
the very earliest stages of plant growth, helping to ensure strong
germination and a healthy root system. Seed treatment stewardship
involves the proper management, handling and storage of treated
seeds, from the time they are ﬁrst treated until they are planted. The
goal of an effective stewardship program is to minimize the potential
risk of exposure during this timeframe to non-target organisms,
which include any living thing in the environment—humans, animals,
pollinators, beneﬁcial insects and plants—that are not the intended
object of the application. Awareness of and adherence to careful
stewardship practices are necessary to ensure that growers
nationwide will continue to have ready access to treated seeds
and can purchase them freely.
Q. What is the seed industry doing to make sure treatments
continue to maximize crop productivity while minimizing
environmental impact?
A. The people who handle, transport and plant seeds need the latest
information on minimizing the potential for adverse environmental
effects while maximizing the beneﬁts to crops. In response to this
need, the American Seed Trade Association and CropLife America
have produced The Guide to Seed Treatment Stewardship. It
provides growers and seed companies with critical information and
up-to-date guidelines for effectively managing treated seed. Experts
from seed treatment companies, including Syngenta, research
universities and numerous domestic and international agricultural
organizations contributed to the content. This collaborative initiative
includes comprehensive educational outreach to seed companies
and grower groups to build awareness about the importance and
elements of seed treatment stewardship. (See “The ABCs of Seed
Treatment,” page 9, for more information on the guide.)
Q. What qualities should growers look for when choosing
someone to apply the seed treatment?
A. Growers should choose applicators who demonstrate extensive
experience speciﬁcally with seed treatment applications and who
employ the latest treatment technologies, polymers and equipment.
Good applicators achieve accurate and uniform coating of the
seed. They also keep accurate records and carefully follow
recommendations of suppliers and other experts.

Treated cotton seed

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>>>> 4Q 2013

Q. From a stewardship perspective, what should growers
consider when selecting treated seed products?
A. The selection of treated seed products starts with choosing the seed
variety that best suits a grower’s land and yield goals. From there,

PHOTOS: (LEFT TO RIGHT) ADAM VOORHES, MARK FINKENSTAEDT
Syngenta Thrive - 4Q/2013

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