USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced the agency will prepare environmental impact statements as it considers the regulatory status of crops genetically engineered with resistance to the herbicides 2,4 dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and Dicamba. Each impact statement will include a 60-day public comment period.

Crops engineered with resistance to the pesticides have been in wide use since the 1960s and have been approved by the Environmental Protection Agency. Approval of the genetically engineered crops would provide farmers with flexibility for new applications of the herbicides while offering additional planting options. APHIS will publish its formal letter of intent to create these impact statements in an upcoming Federal Register.