Tennessee recently imposed restrictions on the use of dicamba, a flagship pesticide for Monsanto Company, becoming the fourth state to take action as problems spread over damage the weed killer causes to crops not genetically modified to withstand it.
Dicamba is sprayed by farmers on crops genetically modified to resist it, but it drifts, damaging vulnerable soybeans, cotton and other crops across the southern United States. Farmers have fought with neighbors over lost crops and brought lawsuits against dicamba producers.
Arkansas banned its use last week and Missouri, which initially halted dicamba spraying, has joined Tennessee with tight restrictions on when and in what weather spraying can be done. Kansas is investigating complaints.
"We've had damage across just about every acre of soybeans we farm in southeast Missouri," said Hunter Raffety, a farmer in Wyatt, Missouri. "In our small town, the azaleas, the ornamentals, people have lost their vegetable gardens. It's a big problem."
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