NRDC Settlement Requires Cal. to Reckon with Treated Seed Loophole

After years of litigation and advocacy, NRDC and our partners entered into a settlement agreement with the California Department of Pesticide Regulation that requires the agency to undertake a rulemaking process to address widespread use of pesticide-treated seeds. The process could make California the first state to address a legal loophole that allows treated seeds to widely contaminate the environment with harmful pesticides like neonicotinoids, or "neonics"-often without delivering promised economic benefits to farmers.

High Costs, Low Benefits

Treated seeds are crop seeds that have been coated with a mixture of pesticides prior to planting. Nationwide, they are the number one use of neonic pesticides that are decimating pollinator populations, contaminating waters, contributing to bird declines, and threatening human health. Seed treatments are especially widespread in corn, soybean, cotton, and wheat-but appear to be growing more popular in other crops, like vegetables.

Leading research consistently shows that some of the most common neonic seed treatments-especially in corn and soybean-fail to deliver economic benefits for farmers. They are advertised as a protection against early season pests, but provide protection for just a few weeks early in the growing season, when soil pests are very rarely at economically damaging levels. As a result, farmers pay a premium to have these coatings on their seeds, but typically fail to see yield benefits that outweigh this extra input cost.

Unchecked Industry Power

Then why are farmers using these treatments, you ask? The answer could lie in increasing consolidation of the agrichemical industry. Just three companies supplied more than 70% of corn and soybean seeds nationwide from 2018-2020. And those same companies profit from the manufacture and sale of neonics and other pesticides. So they have waged an all-out misinformation war, peddling misinformation about the risks and benefits of these products.

These multinational chemical companies have far too much sway over farmer decision-making. In fact, a recent study found that the top two sources of information for farmers were pesticide companies and seed dealers-who themselves have ties to pesticide companies.

Filling a Gaping Loophole

Making matters worse, loopholes in federal and state pesticide laws mean that treated seeds are not regulated like other pesticides, leaving their widespread use untracked and unchecked.

California is no exception; for decades, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation has failed to regulate pesticide treated seeds. The agency claimed that these seeds are not pesticides and, therefore, fall outside the agency's regulatory authority. (See, e.g., Slide 15)

In 2023, NRDC and our partners sued to challenge this mistaken interpretation of California law. Specifically, we argued that DPR maintained a policy that treated seeds are not pesticides without undertaking rulemaking requirements required by California law. In doing so, DPR ignored a common-sense interpretation of California law, as well as a mountain of evidence that treated seeds are marketed, sold, and used as pesticides.

NRDC's settlement will require DPR to consider these issues and propose a plan for regulation of treated seeds by February 2, 2026. Crucially, the public will have an opportunity to comment on DPR's proposed course. NRDC and our allies plan to provide detailed technical comments to ensure the program protects California's people and unique ecosystems from the harms of treated seed use. If not, we stand ready to take the agency back to court to enforce the law.

Related Blogs