Description:

Atrazine has long been a mainstay of corn, sorghum and sugar cane farmers because it’s effective in controlling a broad range of yield-robbing weeds, is safe to the crop and fits in a variety of farming systems. Its ability to increase yields is critical as demand for fuel alternatives and food increases.

Benefits:

• Protecting Corn Yield – A study evaluating the impact of atrazine on corn yields showed that during the 20-year period from 1986 to 2005, the average corn yield was 5.1 percent higher with atrazine than without.
• More Flexible Weed Control Programs – Farmers use atrazine to control weeds on well over half of all the country’s corn acres, about two-thirds of sorghum acreage, and as much as 90 percent of its sugar cane.
• Economical, Effective Weed Control – The U.S. EPA estimates that farming without atrazine could cost corn growers $28 per acre due to yield loss and the use of more expensive herbicides.
• Less Soil Erosion Through Conservation Tillage – Atrazine is a very popular tool for use in conservation tillage or no-till systems — farming methods that eliminate plowing and/or reduce tillage. Conservation tillage makes cropland much less vulnerable to soil erosion, which is reduced by as much as 90 percent when compared to intensive tillage.