Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting

Motions/Consent Items:

1. A motion for approval of the renewal of CLC members Arney, Cranney, Frantz, Gandhi, Roberts, Scholz, and Schreiber. Approved.
2. A motion for approval to accept Lee Van Wychen to the CLC committee.
3. A motion for approval of the 2020 Fall PMC and Special Funding Meetings of December 23, 2020 and January 12, 2021 minutes.
4. A motion to accept the agenda.
5. A motion to proceed with the Benzovindiflupyr/Cranberry study in 2021 in spite of the inherit risk. Approved.
6. A motion to accept Daniel Kunkel as a recipient of the IR-4 Hall of Fame Award.
7. Consensus was provided regarding moving forward with the communications items as presented (regional/state logos, powerpoint template, visual standards, etc.). Consent Provided.

Action Items:

1. Send nominations for CLC open slot previously held by US Apple to Michael Bledsoe.
2. Jerry Barron to look into developing a template for regions to submit to be more concise for the next full 5 year submission (2025).
3. Jerry Baron will bring forth the subaward modifications to the awards management people and have a discussion (i.e. move study from one region to another prior to awarding subs).
4. Regional Directors communicate with regions to get the FDB’s in to wrap up the outstanding studies.
5. Venkat Pedibhotla to reach out to groups after the FUW with expectations (characterized test substances for field and reference substances for the analytical lab)
6. Regional Directors to encourage folks in their regions to complete and submit reports in a timely manner. 
7. Add an agenda items to the Summer Agenda for the PMC to revisit the Backlog Policy

2020 Successes at a Glance

Food Use Program:

• 107 new tolerances established by 22 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) actions based on IR-4 submissions, resulting in 573 new product uses.
• Establishment of Crop Group 25: Herb Group, and Crop Group 26: Spice Group. Established Subgroup 25A for fresh herbs and Subgroup 25B for dried herbs. The two new groups total more than 600 commodities.
• 2020 research included:
  • 60 new residue studies
  • 42 product performance projects
  • Staff at many IR-4 analytical laboratories continued reducing the backlog of unanalyzed residue samples.
  • Twenty-six petitions were submitted to the EPA. • IR-4 continued to receive requests for assistance in defining data requirements to support product registrations on hemp, and in 2020 initiated its first hemp residue study.
  • IR-4 continued work with the Canadian Pest Management Center on joint research projects. Canada contributed a number of field trials to the joint program that supports registrations in both countries, saving IR-4 an estimated $500,000 annually and preventing trade irritants before they happen.
  • IR-4 successfully held our annual priority-setting workshop in September and national research planning meeting in October, allowing us to establish Food Use and IS program research priorities for 2021.
• Integrated Solutions (IS) focused research on 14 project areas, with the goal of developing systems of one or more chemical or bio-based tools to solve critical pest management issues.
• Environmental Horticulture (EH) Program: Compiled 24 research data summaries. Initiated 650 field trials. Four labels were registered in California, impacting 690 crops. Biopesticide and Organic Support Program: Achieved two registrations with an exemption from tolerance: for the bioherbicide Pseudomonas fluorescens ACK55, and for sucrose octanoate, a biochemical insecticide/miticide.
  • Non-core activities included the continuation of the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) Protecting Pollinators Project’s efforts to examine bee visitation to common annuals and herbaceous perennials. The team continued studies on the amount of systemic insecticides found in pollen and nectar of treated plants. They wrote more than five scientific and eight trade articles, and gave more than 40 presentations to multiple audiences.
• Biopesticide and Organic Support Program In addition to “exempt from tolerance” successes, a submission was made for oxalic acid dihydrate for an exemption from tolerance and a label amendment for control of Varroa mites. IR-4 also successfully obtained EPA biochemical classification for pongamia oil, an insect behavior disruptor targeting Spotted wing Drosophila, and a pesticide determination for sterile male mosquitoes. International Activities
• International - 
  • In partnership with the Minor Use Foundation, IR-4 successfully held a virtual Global Minor Use Priority Setting Workshop in September, organizing requests for over 4,000 crop-pest combinations from 56 countries using a new merit analysis system and determining the top global needs in greenhouse, temperate, and tropical crops.
  •  IR-4 remains involved in global capacity building through development of expertise to conduct field and laboratory pesticide residue studies under Good Laboratory Practices (GLP), primarily with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) in Latin America and the Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI) in Asia

Bika, R., Alexander, L., Palmer, C., and Baysal-Gurel, F. 2020. Efficacy of fungicides and biorational product of Botrytis cinerea on cut flowerheads of Hydrangea macrophylla. ASHS Poster

Bika, R., Palmer, C., Alexander, L., and Baysal-Gurel, F. 2020. Comparative performance of reducedrisk fungicides and biorational products in management of post-harvest Botrytis cinerea on hydrangea cut flowers. HortTechnology. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTTECH04656-20 13

Fulya Baysal-Gurel, Ravi Bika, Christina Jennings, Cristi Palmer, and Terri Simmons. 2020. Comparative Performance of Chemical and Biological-based Products in Management of Algal Leaf Spot on Magnolia. HortTechnology. https://doi.org/10.21273/HORTTECH04692-20

Homa, K., W.P. Barney, W.P. Davis, D. Guerrero, M.J. Berger. 2020. Cold Plasma Treatment Strategies for the Control of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. basilici in Sweet Basil. HortScience, 56(1):42-51.

Kunkel, D. and M. Alvarez. 2020. AAFC PMC / USDA IR-4 Project Harmonization. Presentation to the NAFTA Technical Working Group. Oct. 2020

Kunkel, D., R. B. Batts, J. Baron, and M. J. Braverman. 2020. IR-4 Project Update and Program Changes. Proc. Weed Sci. Soc. America, Abstract #100

Palmer C. L., Smitley, D., Chong, J-H, Bethke, J, Corkidi L, Thayaril, N, Leonard E. 2020. Systemic insecticide residues in greenhouse annuals and implications for pest management. Virtual ESA Annual Meeting. Dec 2020

Palmer, C. L., E. Vea. 2020. Update on 2019 Weed Science Research in the IR-4 Environmental Horticulture Program and 2020/2021 Priorities. Northeastern Plant, Pest, and Soils Conference. January 2020

Vea, E., C.L. Palmer. 2020. Crop Vignette: Coleus. https://www.ir4project.org/ehc/crop-vignette-coleus/

Vea, E., C.L. Palmer. 2020. Crop Vignette: Gerbera. https://www.ir4project.org/ehc/crop-vignettegerbera/

Vea, E., C.L. Palmer. 2020. Crop Vignette: Salvia. https://www.ir4project.org/ehc/crop-vignette-salvia/

Vea, E., C.L. Palmer. 2020. Crop Vignette: Hydrangea. https://www.ir4project.org/ehc/crop-vignettehydrangea/

Vea, E., C.L. Palmer. 2020. Crop Vignette: Hosta. https://www.ir4project.org/ehc/crop-vignette-hosta/

Vea, E., C.L. Palmer. 2020. Crop Vignette: Ferns. https://www.ir4project.org/ehc/crop-vignette-ferns/

Welker, R.M., and R. B. Batts. 2020. Evaluation of Herbicide Programs in Dormant Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana) in North Carolina. Proc. Weed Sci. Soc. America, Abstract #97