NOVEMBER 2017 GERMINATION.CA 45 “We don’t make decisions emotionally — we look at the science and then [use that] to make a decision. If the science showed you’ve got a real issue and you’ve got to make a change, farmers here have always adapted to that change and industry has adapted to that change.” Denys was heartened by recent news that Health Canada plans to hold off on a making a decision on a possible federal ban on the use of imidacloprid, a neonicotinoid insecticide, until the end of this year. “I view that as very good news. It says they’re looking at the base research that was used, they’re looking at some of the points that were brought forward by a whole spectrum of groups including the horticulture industry and crop production industry and saying, ‘Wait a minute, we’ve got to look at this too,’” says Denys, adding a ban on neonicotinoids could create an even bigger problem by creating an even heavier reli- ance on some foliar sprays. Denys says one of the things the seed indus- try needs to do is work together to better edu- cate the public about what it has accomplished to date and “walk them through the evolution of why we’re doing the things we’re doing today.” New Products in the Pipeline Bayer has teamed up with several industry part- ners and organizations as part of the Bees Matter initiative. The outreach program aims to share information on honeybee health in Canada with the Canadian public and raise awareness with everyone from agricultural producers to back- yard gardeners about practices they can adopt to ensure pollinator health. Bayer is also part of a bee health roundtable group spearheaded by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada that has been tasked with identifying and addressing risks and opportunities related to bee health. One of the projects the company is involved with that will be of interest to the seed sector is the creation of a new fluency agent for negative pressure air seeders. In the past, a mixture of talc and graphite was used to expedite the move- ment of corn and other seed as it was vacuumed through the seeder. The wax-based fluency agent means there is far less dust created when treated seed exits the seeder. “There’s been a significant reduction in the creation of any dust that might contain the seed treatment compound,” Thiel says. “It’s been effec- tive and the growers have adopted it. They’re very interested in maintaining the biodiversity and the natural surroundings of their farms.” Bayer is also working on a new miticide designed to help beekeepers control the Varroa mite, which has been referred to as the vampire of the honeybee industry. There are currently few ways to control the deadly parasite, which origi- nated in Asia. Research has indicated the strips can control as much as 95 per cent of mites. “It will give a rotational option to beekeepers so they are not as reliant on too few compounds and help to reduce the potential for resistance development in the Varroa mite population,” Thiel says. First-of-its-Kind Study While pollinators have been making plenty of news, knowledge of their habits and habitats here in Canada remains lacking. Nigel Raine, a pollinator expert at the University of Guelph and Rebanks family chair in pollinator conservation, is seeking to change that. Raine is leading a team of researchers that will be monitoring pollinator activity at 50 differ- ent locations throughout the province of Ontario as part of a multi-year study that began in 2016. It’s believed to be the first time a study of this kind has been conducted on such a large scale anywhere in Canada. “What we’re hoping to get is a broader picture of the distribution of wild pollinator spe- cies and how they’re related to different habitat types and different land use categories. We’re trying to include everything from provincial parks and conservation areas through to inten- sive agriculture and even some urban sites,” Raine says. “The main aim the first few years is to get a baseline to see which species are where. If we can see areas where they have very healthy populations, we can look at the types of habi- tats in that area and we can say this is the sort of matrix that we want to look at [being part of the landscape] on a scale that pollinators need.” One of the biggest challenges with the study, according to Raine, is the large number of dif- ferent pollinators that call Canada home. There are more than 850 species of bees in this coun- try, with most of them being solitary ground- dwellers. Raine says the study has potential implica- tions for the agriculture industry in not only Ontario but the rest of the country, since three- quarters of the leading food crops are pollinated by some form of animal. The data from the study could eventually help determine where pollinator habitats need to be located and how widely they should be distributed. As for the seed sector, Raine says the study could lead to more integration with industry in terms of how plants, particularly native plants, Stephen Denys is director of business management for Maizex Seeds and a long-time member of the Canadian Seed Trade Association (CSTA). “WEOFTEN HAVEMORE OFAN OPPORTUNITY TOGETPEOPLE INTERESTEDIN THECONCEPT WITHINAMORE URBANIZED CONTEXT. EVENTUALLY, OVERTIME, THEIDEADOES TAKEHOLD.” –VickiWojcik