Crop Protection

Our Approach

Pulse Canada is committed to ensuring pulse growers have access to the crop protection products they need to grow our industry while keeping export markets open. By proactively monitoring crop protection product MRLs in export markets and identifying registered crop protection products in Canada that may pose a market access risk in an export market due to a missing or misaligned MRL, Pulse Canada helps the industry identify challenges before they become problems for both buyers and sellers.

Managing MRL Risks

Pulse Canada works to manage the risk of an MRL non-compliance with a short, medium and long term strategy.

Short term: Ensure there is no unacceptable level of trade risk with the use of crop protection products.

The goal is to balance trade risk to ensure farmers have access to these important tools but won’t create a trade concern. If a crop protection product registered for use on Canadian pulse crops is identified as posing a market access risk, it is communicated to growers through an MRL advisory on the keepitclean.ca website. This ensures growers either talk to their grain buyer before applying the crop protection product to ensure it is acceptable for use, or do not use the product if the risk is too great for export markets. The MRL Advisory is reviewed annually, and can be found here.

Medium term: Work to attain the required MRL or import tolerance.

Long term: MRL harmonization.

Pulse Canada participates in a broader, multi-commodity, multi-country effort to advocate for the harmonization of MRLs in the global marketplace by utilizing international standards like Codex Alimentarius, increased regulatory cooperation between countries, and incorporate MRL harmonization efforts into trade agreements. This long term strategy is led by the Canada Grains Council.

Keep it Clean

In addition to the market access strategies specific to the pulse industry, Pulse Canada is a key partner in Keep it Clean, a joint effort by Pulse Canada, Cereals Canada and the Canola Council of Canada to provide growers and other industry stakeholders with the information they need to ensure their crops will be market-ready. Through Keep It Clean, the pulse industry produces an annual Grower Advisory on the market impacts of various crop protection products and producer-focused messaging promoted through various channels.

Learn More

Ensuring Access to New Products

Canadian pulse growers need access to innovative and new crop protection technology to remain competitive and manage challenges on their farm. Pulse Canada works to ensure life science companies understand the current and emerging challenges pulse growers are facing, and advocate for the development of new products or tools to address these challenges.

Pulse Canada works closely with industry partners, such as the Canada Grains Council, to ensure the regulatory environment in Canada encourages innovation. This includes access to tools developed using plant breeding innovation, which leads to the development of new pulse varieties that could address challenges without the application of a product.