Document ID: EPA-HQ-OPP-2014-0108-0006
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2016-05-19T04:00Z

Polyoxorim Usage 2010-2014
                                       

Agricultural Usage 

Polyoxorim (also known as polyoxin D), is the active portion of the active ingredient polyoxin d Zinc salt compound (PC Code 23000) (EPA 2003).

The following figures and tables describes the agricultural usage of Polyoxorim between 2010 and 2014, from Market Research Data (MRD), which was collected and sold by a private market research firm.  This firm collects data on pesticide usage for about 60 crops by annual surveys of agricultural users in the continental United States.  Survey methodology provides statistically valid results, typically at the state level.

Reported usage of polyoxorim increased steeply between 2010 and 2012, both in terms of total area treated and total pounds applied. Since 2012, however, usage has been steadily declining (Figure 1). Although Polyoxorim was registered prior to 2010, no usage was reported by MRD in earlier years.

Figure 1.  Polyoxorim Total Acres Treated and Total Pounds A.I. Applied (2010-2014).
Source: Market Research Data (MRD). 2010-2014.
      
Approximately 70% of polyoxorim, both average pounds applied and acres treated annually, is applied to almonds. The remaining 30% of usage is split between pistachios and grapes. All four crops have similar average reported application rates (between 0.042 and 0.044). All usage reported by MRD occurred in California (Table 1).

Table 1. Polyoxorim Use on Crops: Average A.I. Rate (2010-2014). 
                                     Crop
                           Average Pounds A.I./year
                      Average Total Acres Treated /year *
                              Average A.I. Rate 
                                (lbs a.i./acre)
                         Average Percent Crop Treated
                                     State
Almonds
                                     2,500
                                    291,000
                                     0.044
                                       5
                                  California
Pistachios
                                      750
                                    86,000
                                     0.044
                                      10
                                  California
Grapes, Wine
                                      150
                                    17,000
                                     0.042
                                    <2.5
                                  California
Grapes, Table
                                      80
                                    10,000
                                     0.043
                                      10
                                  California
Total
                                     3,480
                                    404,000
                                    0.043[**]
                                       
                                  California
*    Total Acres Treated sums all acres treated for a crop, including those acres that receive multiple treatments. 
**  Other Avg. AI Rate is the average of the average rates used on all crops.
Source: Market Research Data (MRD).  2010-2014.

In addition to private Market Research Data source cited above, polyoxin usage is reported in the United States Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA NASS). While the majority of NASS' survey data on agricultural crops was "withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations", it did show reportable usage on strawberries in 2014. While the average application rate reported for strawberries by NASS is similar to those reported for almonds, pistachios, and grapes by MRD, NASS reports that the average pounds applied to strawberries in 2014 was nearly equal to the amount reported on all four crops reported by MRD (Table 2). 

Table 2. Polyoxorim Use on Strawberries (2014). 
                                     Crop
                           Average Pounds A.I./year
                        Average A.I. Rate/ Application 
                                (lbs a.i./acre)
                   Average Number of Applications per Year 
                             Percent Crop Treated
Strawberries
                                     3,300
                                     0.474
                                      1.7
                                       7
Source: USDA NASS
Usage on strawberries in 2014 was not reported in MRD. This difference in reported crops is likely due to differences in surveying methodology and coverage between the two databases.
The low reported percent crop treated on all sites in both databases suggests this chemical is not of great importance to the production of these crops.

Non-Agricultural Usage
USDA NASS also provides limited data on polyoxorim usage on ornamentals. This reported data shows that average application rates to ornamentals are slightly lower than those applied to agricultural crops. The low reported percent of operations treated on all sites suggests this chemical is not of great importance to the overall nursery and floriculture industry (Table 3). As with the agricultural crops surveyed by NASS, the sample size for many of these site is so small for polyoxorim that data was withheld to prevent identifying individual operations. 
Table 3. Polyoxorim Use on Ornamentals (2009). 
                                     Site
                        Average A.I. Rate/ Application 
                                (lbs a.i./acre)
                         Percent of Operations Treated
Bedding Plants, Annual
                                     0.016
                                       2
Bedding Plants, Herbaceous Perennial
                                      (D)
                                       2
Cut Flowers
                                     0.036
                                       5
Deciduous Flowering Trees
                                      (D)
                                       1
Deciduous Shrubs
                                      (D)
                                       1
Evergreens, Broadleaf
                                      (D)
                                       1
Propagative Material, Floriculture
                                      (D)
                                       2
Flowering Plants, Potted
                                     0.037
                                       1
Floriculture Totals
                                     0.031
                                       2
Nursery Totals
                                     0.039
                                      (Z)
Nursery & Floriculture Totals
                                     0.031
                                       1
(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations
(Z) Less than half the rounding unit
Source: USDA NASS

References

EPA. 2003.  Consideration of Eligibility for Registration of the New Pesticide Active Ingredient Polyoxin D Zinc Salt-DECISION MEMORANDUM. 
http://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/reg_actions/registration/related_PC-230000_1-Jul-03.pdf