Farmers are reminded that only registered professional users (PUs) may legally apply pesticides on farms.

With spring crops receiving fungicide, and silage ground regrowth soon ideal for dock control, it’s important that farmers not use either a boom or knapsack sprayer unless they have registered with the Department of Agriculture and been issued with a PU number.

To complete registration, farmers must have completed an approved training course. Farmers not registered must contract in the services of a registered user to apply any fungicide (disease spray), herbicide (weed killer), insecticide or other pesticide.

Since the deadline of November 2015, thousands of farmers have moved to comply with the regulations.

The Department of Agriculture confirmed to the Irish Farmers Journal on Wednesday that almost 21,000 people have been approved as professional users.

Cross-compliance inspections will encompass chemical storage, record keeping, and pesticide user certification.

From October, all boom sprayers must be certified as part of the Sustainable Use Directive.

According to the Department of Agriculture, “inspections are carried out as part of the Cross Compliance checks but, in addition, the Pesticide Controls Division also conducts inspections at end-user level for individuals who are not Basic Payment Scheme applicants, eg golf courses, local authorities, etc”.

Go to http://www.pcs. agriculture.gov.ie/sud/ for further information on the Sustainable Use Directive.

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SUD obligations extend across the supply chain