Bt Corn Farmer Compliance with Insect Resistance Management Requirements: Results from the 2002 Minnesota and Wisconsin Farm Polls

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reregistered Bt corn in 2001 with mandatory Insect Resistance Management (IRM) requirements in order to promote sustainable use by farmers. Since then studies report IRM compliance rates ranging from 80 to 90 percent. Using survey data from Minnesota and Wisconsin, we show that previous compliance rate estimates are likely too high because they do not use a comprehensive measure for compliance. With a more comprehensive measure, we find compliance rates ranging between 60 to 75 percent.Bt corn, compliance, Insect Resistance Management, refuge, Crop Production/Industries,

Food Insecurity Prevalence Across Diverse Sites During COVID-19: A Year of Comprehensive Data

Key Findings NFACT includes 18 study sites in 15 states as well as a national poll, collectively representing a sample size of more than 26,000 people. Some sites have implemented multiple survey rounds, here we report results from 22 separate surveys conducted during the year since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020. 18 out of 19 surveys in 14 sites with data for before and since the pandemic began found an increase in food insecurity since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as compared to before the pandemic. In nearly all surveys (18/19) that measured food insecurity both before and during the pandemic, more Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) were classified as food insecure during the pandemic as compared to before it began. Prevalence of food insecurity for BIPOC respondents was higher than the overall population in the majority of surveys (19/20) sampling a general population. In almost all surveys (21/22), the prevalence of food insecurity for households with children was higher than the overall prevalence of food insecurity. Food insecurity prevalence was higher for households experiencing a negative job impact during the pandemic (i.e. job loss, furlough, reduction in hours) in nearly all surveys and study sites (21/22). Food insecurity prevalence in most sites was significantly higher before COVID-19 than estimates from that time period. Reporting a percent change between pre and during COVID-19 prevalence may provide additional information about the rate of change in food insecurity since the start of the pandemic, which absolute prevalence of food insecurity may not capture. Results highlight consistent trends in food insecurity outcomes since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, across diverse study sites, methodological approaches, and time

Bt Corn Farmer Compliance with Insect Resistance Management Requirements in Minnesota and Wisconsin

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) re-registered Bt corn in 2001 with mandatory insect resistance management (IRM) requirements in order to promote sustainable use by farmers. Since then studies have reported IRM compliance rates ranging from 79% to 96%. Using survey data from Minnesota and Wisconsin, we show that previous compliance rate estimates are likely too high because they do not use a comprehensive measure for compliance. With a more comprehensive measure, we find compliance rates ranging between 72% and 76%. We also explore the relationship between IRM awareness, farm size, and IRM compliance.Financial support from the USDA-IFAFS program, Minnesota and Wisconsin Agricultural Experiment Stations, and PATS are gratefully acknowledged.Includes bibliographical reference

Impacts of an Opioid Overdose Prevention Intervention Delivered Subsequent to Acute Care

Background Opioid overdose is a major and increasing cause of injury and death. There is an urgent need for interventions to reduce overdose events among high-risk persons. Methods Adults at elevated risk for opioid overdose involving heroin or pharmaceutical opioids who had been cared for in an emergency department (ED) were randomised to overdose education combined with a brief behavioural intervention and take-home naloxone or usual care. Outcomes included: (1) time to first opioid overdose-related event resulting in medical attention or death using competing risks survival analysis; and (2) ED visit and hospitalisation rates, using negative binomial regression and adjusting for time at risk. Results During the follow-up period, 24% of the 241 participants had at least one overdose event, 85% had one or more ED visits and 55% had at least one hospitalisation, with no significant differences between intervention and comparison groups. The instantaneous risk of an overdose event was not significantly lower for the intervention group (sub-HR: 0.83; 95% CI 0.49 to 1.40). Discussion These null findings may be due in part to the severity of the population in terms of housing insecurity (70% impermanently housed), drug use, unemployment and acute healthcare issues. Given the high overdose and healthcare utilisation rates, more intensive interventions, such as direct referral and provision of housing and opioid agonist treatment medications, may be necessary to have a substantial impact on opioid overdoses for this high-acuity population in acute care settings

Bt Corn Farmer Compliance with Insect Resistance Management Requirements: Results from the 2002 Minnesota and Wisconsin Farm Polls

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reregistered Bt corn in 2001 with mandatory Insect Resistance Management (IRM) requirements in order to promote sustainable use by farmers. Since then studies report IRM compliance rates ranging from 80 to 90 percent. Using survey data from Minnesota and Wisconsin, we show that previous compliance rate estimates are likely too high because they do not use a comprehensive measure for compliance. With a more comprehensive measure, we find compliance rates ranging between 60 to 75 percent