To date, only pesticides registered for use with drones — often called remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS) — can legally be applied by drones. Almost none are registered for drone application.

WHY IT MATTERS: The proposed regulations would make many existing pesticides available for application by drone. To date, almost no products have been made available for legal application by drone — though anecdotal evidence suggests drone application is happening on the down low.

Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) proposes to allow currently registered products, where the label permits aerial application — that is, by fixed wing or rotary aircraft — to be applied by drone.

Applicators would need to comply with all the label directions for aerial application, including spray volume, application rate, droplet size, treatment interval and spray buffer zones.

When used according to aerial application instructions, the PMRA said, drone application is not expected to impact the value of the pesticide being applied.

Based on data from global studies, spray drift with drone application is similar to ground application. Spray buffer zones established for conventionally-piloted rotary wing aircraft will be adequate. The PMRA also said pesticide residues on food crops are not higher than with conventional applications.

The PMRA said there isn’t enough data for a full risk assessment on safety risks of operators exposure to pesticides; however, it says available evidence suggests it’s “unlikely to be higher than with conventional equipment” — particularly because tasks such as mixing, loading and application must be done by different people, just as with other aerial spraying.

Consultations opened on Feb. 23 and close March 25.

Drone pilots would still require the relevant licenses from Transport Canada.

PMRA passes five-year mark on regulation studies

The PMRA began studying drone regulations in 2019. In September, members of the federal standing committee on agriculture asked the PMRA’s senior director general Frédéric Bissonette what was taking so long.

Bissonette cited scientific issues — for example, that a drone did not behave the same as an airplane — and pledged to have “something in place for next year.”

“Canada seems to be kind of falling behind other jurisdictions in terms of allowing this type of use,” CropLife Canada CEO Pierre Petelle told Glacier FarmMedia in late 2025.

“With these products being used in many other western-type jurisdictions … there should be ways of coming to conclusions much quicker than we have,” he added.

Crop protection companies, meanwhile, have been conducting studies to collect drone-specific data for their products.

Anecdotal evidence suggested farmers were using already drones to apply pesticides on the down low.

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The event brought together growers, livestock producers, researchers, policymakers, and industry partners in celebration of Ontario’s agri-food sector.

Jocelyn Smith, an assistant professor of field crop entomology at Guelph, shared ongoing challenges facing farmers as pest-resistant crops continue to emerge in Ontario.

“Pests keep changing, and new pests come into Ontario. We need to learn about them,” she said, adding that her department continues to develop monitoring programs to test and evaluate new pest control products.

She noted that there is also ongoing evaluation of old economic thresholds in an effort to develop more cost-effective treatment options.

As of 2006, she said that there has been an increase of insecticide-resistant corn, with the most common pest threat being the European corn borer.

She said that 85 per cent of corn grown in Ontario is genetically modified. As of 2018, she noted that there has been resistance discovered in Nova Scotia.

To help slow the spread of resistance, she added that her team is partnering with organizations across Canada and the United States to develop further prevention programs.

Maximizing Calf Health

Michael Steele, a professor with the department of animal biosciences, continued the discussion, sharing updates on his team’s research to enhance the quality of breeding calves in Ontario.

He noted that 40 per cent of calves in Ontario are crossbred beef animals, as producers are breeding more of their lower end dairy cows to beef cows.

He added that research is also being done to reduce the level of microbial use during the early stages of calving. Genetic markers are also being traced among bulls to select the best breeding options.

The next stage of research, he added, is post-weaning nutrition. He said many calves are given a high-starch diet and that new research will explore if this is an environmentally friendly and healthy option, versus other diet alternatives.

The overall objective is to develop a better understanding of how pre-weaning nutritional and management factors can impact gastrointestinal development and metabolism during the pre-weaning phase and later in life.

For more of our coverage of Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show 2025, visit the Farmtario landing page.

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The draft document recommends that the administration promote healthier diets and examine vaccines and prescription drugs but stops short of advising any change to how the U.S. approves or regulates agrochemicals.

The Department of Health and Human Services, whose head, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., chairs the commission, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Trump administration has worked to balance the demands of the MAHA movement aligned with Kennedy, a vaccine skeptic and former environmental lawyer, with the concerns of farmers and ranchers, a key Trump constituency.

A previous report from the MAHA commission issued in May pointed to pesticides, along with processed food and over-prescription of medications and vaccines, for increasing rates of childhood obesity, diabetes and other illnesses.

More than 250 groups representing farmers, ranchers, and agrochemical companies urged the Trump administration in June to seek their input on future MAHA Commission activities. The White House this summer held a series of meetings with food and farm groups to discuss the work of the commission.

The draft report says that the Environmental Protection Agency will work to inform the public of its pesticide review process and collaborate with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to promote precision application of pesticides, which can reduce their overall use.

The EPA will consider exclusions from pollution laws for some farms and meat processing operations, the report says.

The report includes some existing priorities of the administration, like that HHS will investigate injuries from vaccines and prescription of antidepressants.

HHS and the Federal Trade Commission will explore guidelines to limit direct marketing of unhealthy foods to children and the administration will work to improve food quality in hospitals and prisons, the report says.

Along with Kennedy, the commission includes Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and other officials and cabinet members.

— By Leah Douglas, Ahmed Aboulenein and Jessica DiNapoli

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International regulations are a complex web for Canadian producers, speakers on a late-July Keep It Clean webinar warned.

“When you think about the different crops that are represented, our major field crops, canola, our cereals and our pulses, a large proportion of those are exported,” noted Krista Zuzak, director of crop protection and production for Cereals Canada.

WHY IT MATTERS: Failing to follow the pesticide label or pre-harvest application windows sets farmers up for marketing issues and also risks Canada’s international trade reputation.

This export dependency means farmers must consider regulations beyond Canada’s borders, Zuzak added.

“Countries do have the right to set their standards and their rules that are around human and plant animal or environmental health,” she said.

Glufosinate-ammonium is a prime example, said Jeff English, vice-president of marketing and communications at Pulse Canada. While glufosinate-ammonium has generic registration for lentils in Western Canada, it shouldn’t be used due to misaligned and unset maximum residue limits, he warned.

Even glyphosate, widely used for pre-harvest weed control, carries market risks.

“We do have MRLs established in all major markets,” English said. However, the product is still flagged for caution because market acceptance varies based on end users.

Technology innovation meets trade reality

The disconnect between domestic approvals and international acceptance extends to new technologies. Zuzak pointed to spray drones as an example of innovation constrained by market considerations.

“While there are a lot of advancements in research happening around this technology, spray drones cannot yet be used to apply pesticides on field crops in Canada,” she said. “Currently, there aren’t any agriculture field crop chemicals or pesticides that have labels right now that authorize spray drone use.”

Applying via drone, besides being illegal, is thus also considered an off-label use and could pose a market risk.

Daily decisions carry global consequences

The complexity translates into detailed operational requirements for farmers.

Curtis Rempel, vice-president of crop production and innovation at the Canola Council of Canada, said that careful precision is required for glyphosate applications on canola.

“For canola staging, because of the indeterminate nature of the crop, it can be a little tricky, but we have enough research, and I think, enough visual guidelines now to really indicate that 30 per cent moisture is 50 to 60 per cent seed color change,” he said.

Farmers must also consider disease management for trade purposes.

Market-driven precaution

So far, the industry has adopted a precautionary approach where even legal products may be restricted based on market concerns rather than safety issues.

“We have our product advisory … which is annually updated, as well as our pre-harvest glyphosate staging guides and our pre harvest interval calculator,” Zuzak said.

The importance of farmer-buyer communication can’t be overstated, English said.

“We always recommend talking to your grain buyer before application, just to confirm as a fail safe.”

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The products are more effective, a dozen farmers across the Thessaly plain said. They are also potentially more harmful: laboratory tests shared with Reuters show the bottles contain pesticides banned in the European Union for several years because of suspected risks to humans or the environment.

The situation in Greece, explained by farmers, elected officials, law enforcement officers and pesticide industry experts, is echoed across the EU, where authorities say the use of banned and counterfeit pesticides is higher than ever.

This comes as the bloc is seeking to reduce even the use of permitted crop aids as part of its green transition.

At least 14 per cent of pesticides used on EU fields today are illegal, up from around 10 per cent in 2015, EU data shows. In some areas of Greece, that number hits 25 per cent, said Greece’s Crop Protection Association ESYF, which represents pesticide companies in the country.

A record 2,040 tonnes of illegal pesticides were seized by police in Europe in 2022, the latest available data by Europol from an EU-wide operation shows, four times higher than in 2019.

The problem is likely even larger because so much smuggling goes undetected, said authorities in Greece and in several of Europe’s main agricultural producers: France, Germany and Spain.

Agriculture Minister Kostas Tsiaras told Reuters Greece was working to protect public health, support farmers, and promote safe, legal agricultural production.

“The fight against illegality is a priority for us,” he said.

The EU Commission did not respond to Reuters’ questions.

Farmers’ livelihoods threatened

Greek farmers are vulnerable to the illegal pesticide trade because of the lingering impacts of the 2010-18 financial crisis and climate change, which has parched their land and brought pest outbreaks.

Pesticides can amount to up to 50 per cent of annual costs, some farmers said. A litre of a popular Greek insecticide costs up to 380 euros (C$607.62). A counterfeit can be found on the black market for 200-230 euros, they added.

The high prices threaten livelihoods in Thessaly, a key breadbasket in central Greece, which produces apples, almonds, grains and cotton. Orchards in the region have been abandoned as farmers seek work elsewhere.

“To survive, a farmer must become a criminal?” said Giorgos Zeikos, a fourth-generation apple farmer who heads a cooperative in the village of Agia.

“It’s one thing to break the law to profit; it’s another to do it just to survive.”

Zeikos said he has refused offers to use illegal pesticides. But farmers in six villages across the hot valley said they, or their relatives or neighbors, had tried them.

Another temptation is the perceived effectiveness of the illegal pesticides.

On a break from the fields, farmers in the cotton-producing village of Metamorfosi recounted how older, now-banned pesticides were so potent that birds would not fly over their fields after they sprayed. Now, they said, they apply twice the recommended dose of the legal product.

George Pontikas, president of ESYF, the crop protection association, dismissed farmers’ claims that pesticides were expensive and inefficient. He said authorities were not doing enough to punish lawbreakers.

“Someone who poisons our food supply to make a profit should be treated as a felon,” said Pontikas, who is also chief executive of the Greek branch of Swiss agrochemicals giant Syngenta.

Illicit chemical trade

The products are smuggled into Greece overland from Bulgaria in spare tires or ferried on rafts traffickers use to bring migrants into Europe from Turkey, farmers and officials said.

In one village, an almond farmer said he once drove to Bulgaria and bought five boxes of counterfeit products for himself and his neighbours. In another, a farmer said locals act as intermediaries for a man known as “the Bulgarian”. When he is expected, they take orders from others in the village.

Farmers pay in cash, spray at night and burn the empty containers to erase all evidence, they said.

“If you want it, you’ll find it,” said Thanasis Kostis, a farmer in Metamorfosi. Kostis said he has not used illegal products.

Farmers who told Reuters they had used the illegal pesticides asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals from authorities.

Bulgaria’s Food Safety Agency said it has stepped up inspections since October to combat the trade and use of unauthorized products.

Turkey’s Trade Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

The trade is increasingly structured, resembling organized economic crime, a senior Greek police official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Roles are divided into import, storage and distribution. Meanwhile, police act largely on tip-offs, three police and industry officials told Reuters.

Dimitris Stavridis, head of Thessaly’s General Directorate of Regional Agricultural Economy, acknowledged that more checks could be carried out in farmers’ markets but said that some regions struggled with understaffing.

Health risks

Seized products go to the Benaki Phytopathological Institute in Athens for analysis. Many arrive with Bulgarian, Turkish, or handwritten labels. Some counterfeits look like EU-approved products but may contain harmful substitutes, including unknown solvents. Under Greek law, only pesticides with Greek labels are legal.

Greek police and Europol say many of these substances originate in China.

China’s Foreign Ministry said in an email it has always asked companies to abide by the laws in the countries in which they operate and that Beijing is willing to strengthen cooperation with the EU on customs enforcement.

The EU bans have been partly due to what regulators identified as health risks, including links to liver, kidney and lung damage, or as possible carcinogens. However, some of these chemicals are used legally in other countries, including the United States.

Over a dozen banned pesticides – some since 2009 – were detected in Greece alone in 2024, tests seen by Reuters show.

“This is serious,” said Thessaly Governor Dimitris Kouretas, a toxicology professor, referring to research on the possible health impact.

In the past year, 10 banned pesticides were detected in Greek produce including olives, cherries, tomatoes, grapes and oranges, Agriculture Ministry data shows.

While the World Health Organization says consumer risk from low pesticide levels is minimal, farmers using illegal chemicals may face greater danger.

In the early 2000s, respiratory physicians at Larissa University Hospital in Thessaly observed that many patients who smoked and were exposed to pesticides were developing a rare form of lung scarring. In 2006, their published findings alongside similar research in France, helped to formally recognize a disease now known as Combined Pulmonary Fibrosis and Emphysema (CPFE).

“Nearly all such patients exposed to both smoking and pesticides developed this distinct entity,” said doctor Ilias Dimeas.

Elsewhere in Greece’s farming regions, doctors say they have seen a rise in respiratory diseases in recent years potentially linked to pesticide exposure and are beginning to take note of their patients’ occupational history.

Farmers greet the risks with a shrug.

“All pesticides have consequences,” said Kostis, the farmer in Metamorfosi. “I had a mask, but this year I haven’t worn it at all.”

— Additional reporting by Alexandros Avramidis in Thessaly; Patricia Weiss in Frankfurt; Riham Alkousaa in Berlin; Sybille de La Hamaide in Paris, Emma Pinedo in Madrid, Georgi Slavov in Sofia, Kate Abnett in Brussels, Joe Cash in Beijing and Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara.

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“The Make America Healthy Again Report is filled with fear-based rather than science-based information about pesticides,” said the National Corn Growers Association in a report.

The report, overseen by U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, says it aims to establish “a clear, evidence-based foundation for the policy interventions, institutional reforms and societal shifts needed to reverse course” on health issues ranging from environmental chemicals to diet and lack of physical activity.

The report is named after the Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, social movement aligned with Kennedy. Kennedy has said there is a national crisis of increasing rates of childhood obesity, diabetes, cancer, mental health disorders, allergies and neurodevelopmental conditions like autism.

Taking aim at ‘ultra-processed food’

Kennedy said there was consensus among the commission’s members to prioritize what he called the ultra-processed food crisis and to work to improve the food American children eat.

The report called for enhanced surveillance and safety research into drugs and childhood health outcomes and clinical studies comparing whole-food to processed-food diets in children.

The definition of ultra-processed food is hotly debated, while the report describes it as industrially manufactured products.

Peter Lurie, president of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a food and health watchdog, said the report recycles longtime concerns of Kennedy, from vaccines to seed oils.

“To the extent that they come up with good ideas, they’re going to run into the self-inflicted wound of their own decimation of the federal workforce. Many of their better ideas will not be doable,” Lurie said.

Pesticide safety

The report also highlighted studies linking health disorders in humans and animals to the weed killers glyphosate and atrazine, but did not call for specific regulatory changes or restrictions on pesticides used in farming. It said the chemicals should be further researched.

One section of the report warns of the “corporate influence” on scientific research and claims “an analysis of a common pesticide found that 50 per cent of non-industry research found it harmful, compared to 18 per cent of industry-funded studies, which also reported fewer significant adverse results.”

Many of the MAHA activists that surround Kennedy were present in Washington for the release of the report, which they largely applauded as a vindication of their work.

But, one such activist, Kelly Ryerson, who campaigns against the use of glyphosate-based pesticides, called the report “very cautious on the subject of pesticides,” adding that she’d like to see more Environmental Protection Agency action on the topic.

Pesticides well studied, farmers say

American farm groups condemned the report’s stance on pesticides as anti-science and unfair to the agriculture sector.

“Decades of extensive research and testing show that pesticides, including atrazine and glyphosate, can be applied safely for their intended uses,” the National Corn Growers Association said.

“If the administration’s goal is to bring more efficiency to government, then why is the secretary of Health and Human Services duplicating efforts by raising questions about pesticides that have been answered repeatedly through research and reviews by federal regulatory bodies?”

The Corn Growers called on the administration “to respect the existing body of science on pesticides and, moving forward, to include America’s farmers in discussion as this process evolves.”

The American Soybean Association called the report “brazenly unscientific and damaging to consumer confidence.”

Saying up is down and down is up

The association specifically decried the report’s targeting of seed oils, including soybean, corn and canola, which it refers to as “ultra-processed fats” and claims they could contribute to inflammation.

Significant research conducted over decades shows that plant-based oils are low in saturated fats and can improve health outcomes,” the association said, citing a March 2025 study which suggests seed oils are healthier than butter.

“This is truly a case of saying up is down and down is up,” said American Soybean Association director Alan Meadows.

“We’re discouraging people from consuming heart-healthy oils and driving them to instead use fats that will make them less healthy and cost them more in the process.”

Farmers shut out

Several groups called on the government to address the report’s shortcomings and bring farmers to the table.

Despite many requests to be included, farmers weren’t involved in developing the report, said American Farm Bureau Federation president Zippy Duvall.

This despite the report calling them “critical partners in the success of the Make America Healthy Again Agenda.”

It’s “deeply troubling for the White House to endorse a report that sows seeds of doubt and fear about our food system and farming practices, then attempts to celebrate farmers and the critical role they play in producing the safest food supply in the world,” said Duvall.

“We are carefully examining the nearly 70 pages of contradictory assertions and look forward to further discussions with administration officials,” Duvall said. “President Trump has voiced his trust in farmers many times and we urge him to ensure a transparent process going forward with farmers.”

The American Soybean Association also called on Trump to intervene and “correct the glaring misinformation and anti-farmer findings in this first report.”

The MAHA report was ordered to be delivered within 100 days of its executive order on February 13. The next step will be for the commission to submit a “Make our Children Healthy Again Assessment” implementation strategy based on the report’s findings by mid-August.

—With files from Reuters

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U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday shrugged off an earlier report of the EU plans from the Financial Times, which cited unnamed EU officials as saying they would present the idea this week.

A draft of the EU’s “Vision for Agriculture and Food” policy document, due to be published on Wednesday and seen by Reuters, confirmed the Commission would take a tougher line on imports to ensure a fair level playing field for Europe’s farmers.

“The Commission will pursue, in line with international rules, a stronger alignment of production standards applied to imported products, notably on pesticides and animal welfare,” said the draft.

“The Commission will ensure that the most hazardous pesticides banned in the EU for health and environmental reasons are not allowed back into the EU through imported products.”

The draft, which did not specify which pesticides were the most hazardous, could still change before it is published.

The EU move could block imports of U.S. soybeans and other foods treated with pesticides not used by European farmers.

A European Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the leaked draft document.

Trump said on Sunday the EU move would hurt Europe, and a White House official said the president would stand up for American farmers. Trump said the U.S. was sticking to its plans to implement reciprocal tariffs.

Tensions are running high between the U.S. and the EU after Trump’s decision to impose 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports from March 12 and “reciprocal” tariffs from April, as well as separate tariffs on cars, pharmaceuticals and semiconductor chips.

The EU sets maximum residue levels in food imports of some pesticides banned in the EU.

Last year the Commission proposed to keep allowing residues of the fungicide cyproconazole and the insecticide spirodiclofen – which cannot be used by farmers in the EU – in imported products, despite European Parliament lawmakers demanding the thresholds were reduced to the lowest possible limit.

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Signs of these financial impacts are already emerging. Bayer shares fell sharply to a 20-year low on Tuesday, after the chemical company warned that weak global agricultural markets and a slumping U.S. farm economy are likely to pressure profits further.

Agrichemical competitors Syngenta, Corteva and the agriculture unit of Germany’s BASF could also face challenges in the sector, analysts said.

Nearly one-third of all the pesticides and fungicides that Paul Butler uses on his Illinois soybean and corn farm are generic to help him cut costs in a tight year, he said.

Fellow Illinois grain grower Jeff O’Connor is doing the same. “It’s like if you grew up eating Fruity Pebbles and now you go to Dollar General and get Fruity Bites,” he said.

Despite the cost savings, farmers say there can be drawbacks to downgrading. Manufacturers of generic chemicals typically do not cover the cost of respraying if the product does not work, said Caleb Hamer, an Iowa corn and soy farmer.

Still, Midwestern distributors and grain elevators say they have seen customers cutting back their spring pesticide and herbicide budgets.

Some farmers are shifting away from branded products, said Matt Carstens, chief executive of farm cooperative Landus and agricultural financing company Conduit. Others are investing in equipment that targets and treats weeds and pests in their fields – allowing them to buy less herbicides and pesticides altogether, he said.

“It comes down to this: What does the farmer really need? Do they need a name brand, with protection insurance and complaint policies backing it? Do they need to pay for all of that?” Carstens said.

Off-patent chemistry

When it comes to chemistry, a farmer’s buying decisions often are rooted in the seed.

Farmers typically base their chemical purchases with trait-specific seeds they want – such as ones that produce a drought-tolerant crop or can withstand herbicide applications that kill weeds without harming the plant.

If there is a generic option to brand-name herbicides, and the seeds that a farmer purchases can tolerate it, then it can makes sense to go with a less expensive product, said Mac Marshall, founder of agriculture advising firm Balcony View Consulting.

The number of generics available to farmers is growing. The patent for glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup and the world’s most widely used herbicide, expired in 2000, according to Rabobank agricultural analysts Owen Wagner and Sam Taylor.

More than two dozen active ingredient patents have expired in the past five years – spurring a boom in off-patent use, which now accounts for about 80 per cent of the agrichemical market share, they said.

Now, with farmers facing weak margins this spring, they’re more likely to look for cost savings among their fertilizer or crop protection chemicals, Taylor said.

— Additional reporting by Karl Plume in Chicago

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The meeting was held in Whitehorse from July 17 to 19.

According to a federal news release, ministers discussed the importance of improving business risk management (BRM) programs—in particular, improving the AgriRecovery program and its interaction with other programs like AgriStability and crop insurance.

They discussed adjustments to AgriStability for livestock and agreed to make further decisions on potential improvements at their next meeting, the news release said.

They also made general commitments to improving the timeliness and responsiveness of BRM programs.

Following an agreement this week from all major grocery retailers to participate in the industry-led Grocery Sector Code of Conduct, officials agreed to pitch in $1.2 million in short-term funding to support the code of conduct adjudication office.

The ministers also reviewed and endorsed the FPT (Federal Provincial Territorial) action plan to address the recommendations by the FPT pesticide management working group, and they agreed to create an additional working group to explore “approaches that meet the needs of producers and protect human and ecosystem health, while using a science and evidence-based approach to regulatory decisions,” the release said.

The ministers discussed efforts related to animal disease preparedness and response—e.g. African swine fever.

On African swine fever, “ministers noted the significant progress made on readiness to protect the health of animals and the importance of having measures in place, including international zoning arrangements to mitigate any possible risks of trade-related market disruptions.”

More to come.

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Canada’s Pest Management Review Agency approved Garlon XRT herbicide, the first industrial vegetation product with drone application on the label.

“We are the first company to have a pesticide registered with PMRA for drone application,” said Mark Versluys, specialties business leader for Corteva Agriscience in Calgary.

“There is no other pesticide in Canada that has drone application on the label,” he said.

Versluys said the data collection and processing of the information required for approval took many months before the company received approval from PMRA.

Now, the herbicide can be sprayed by drone under utility right-of-ways, transmission lines, oil and gas leases and on steep mountainous terrain, anywhere Garlon was already registered for use in industrial areas. The approval does not extend to drone spraying for agricultural use.

Versluys said Corteva will continue to collect data and work with PMRA to have other pesticides registered for application by drone in the future.

“This isn’t just a one and done. This is the first step in a very exciting journey,” he said.

“I think the future looks very bright.”

Markus Weber, president of Landview Drones, said while the door is open a crack, PMRA needs to do more to add drone application registration for agricultural use to existing labels. Approving one herbicide at a time will take five to 10 years before there is a large selection of chemistry available for farmers.

Weber said ideally, he would hope PMRA would approve any chemical for drones that is now approved for aircraft.

“To me that is ultimately the way that we need to do this. It can’t just be label by label,” he said at the Agriculture in Motion farm show held northwest of Saskatoon.

In the first hour of the show, more than 120 farmers showed up for a drone demonstration.

“It is incredible. Farmers see this as a tool primarily for three things: brush control, pasture fungicide application and desiccant application.”

Pest control products can’t legally be sprayed by drone, but farmers see the potential, he said.

“Now that drones can fly large acreages and spraying can be done quickly and reliably, they see the potential, but they just can’t because the label doesn’t allow them to.”

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