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Texas Agriculture Archive

July 5, 2002

Group seeks atrazine ban

The National Resources Defense Council has told the Environmental Protection Agency that atrazine, the most widely used herbicide in the United States, should be banned.

NRDC also said EPA and the Department of Justice should investigate Syngenta Crop Protection, the primary manufacturer of atrazine, for withholding information on the adverse affects that may be caused by atrazine. NRDC said Syngenta failed to disclose that 17 of its workers developed prostate cancer, and the council also said atrazine had been linked to deformities in frogs. Syngenta responded to the council's claims, saying NRDC is "misusing" information and drawing "outrageous conclusions."

The American Farm Bureau Federation has extensive policy regarding agricultural herbicides and pesticides. AFBF supports regulatory decisions made using reliable information and actual data and believes that regulations must not disrupt agricultural production and not undermine our competitiveness in international markets.