The Enlist Weed Control System is an

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

system that includes seeds for

genetically modified crops Genetically modified crops (GM crops) are plants used in agriculture, the DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering methods. Plant genomes can be engineered by physical methods or by use of '' Agrobacterium'' for the delivery of ...

that are resistant to Enlist (a broadleaf

herbicide Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weed killers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page f ...

with two active agents,

2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid is an organic compound with the chemical formula . It is usually referred to by its ISO common name 2,4-D. It is a systemic herbicide that kills most broadleaf weeds by causing uncontrolled growth, but most gra ...

(2,4-D) and

glyphosate Glyphosate (IUPAC name: ''N''-(phosphonomethyl)glycine) is a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide and crop desiccant. It is an organophosphorus compound, specifically a phosphonate, which acts by EPSP inhibitor, inhibiting the plant enzyme 5-en ...

) and the Enlist herbicide; spraying the herbicide will kill weeds but not the resulting crop. The system was developed by

Dow AgroSciences Dow AgroSciences Limited liability company, LLC was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Dow Chemical Company specializing in not only agricultural chemicals such as pesticides, but also seeds and biotechnology solutions. The company was based in ...

, part of

Dow Chemical Company The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. The company was among the three largest chemical producers in the world in 2021. It is the operating subsidiary of Dow Inc., ...

. In October 2014 the system was registered for restricted use in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin by the

US Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it began operation on De ...

. In 2013, the system was approved by Canada for the same uses. The Enlist approach was developed to replace the "Roundup-Ready" system that was introduced in 1996 by

Monsanto The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best-known product is Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbicide, developed ...

and which has become less useful with the rise of glyphosate-resistant weeds.

''Enlist Duo''

''Enlist Duo'' is an

that contains the choline form of

(2,4-D) and

plus an unknown number of unlisted ingredients. Dow added chemicals to the mixture in what it termed "Colex-D technology". 2,4-D is one of the most widely used herbicides in the world. 2,4-D is volatile and by EPA assessment is a hazardous air pollutant that is difficult to contain. According to Dow, the Colex-D formulation reduces drift and damage from evaporation. As of 2013 glyphosate was the world's largest-selling herbicide, with sales driven by glyphosate-resistant

. Other countries assessing the system include Brazil, Argentina and various food importing countries.

Enlist crops

As of April 2014 maize and soybeans resistant to 2,4-D and glyphosate had been approved in Canada, and in September 2014 the

USDA The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commerc ...

approved the same two crops.ISAAA GM Approval Databas
GM Approval Database Genes List, Gene: aad1
International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA), n.d. accessed February 27, 2015

Criticism

2,4-D was one of the main ingredients of

Agent Orange Agent Orange is a chemical herbicide and defoliant, one of the tactical uses of Rainbow Herbicides. It was used by the U.S. military as part of its herbicidal warfare program, Operation Ranch Hand, during the Vietnam War from 1962 to 1971. T ...

, a defoliant used during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

that was blamed for many health problems. According to a Reuters article the main health problems arose from

TCDD TCDD may refer to: * Turkish State Railways (Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demiryolları), the national railway carrier of Turkey ** TCDD Taşımacılık, a Turkish transport company responsible for railway operations * 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzodiox ...

contamination created in the synthesis of the other Agent Orange component,

2,4,5-T 2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (also known as 2,4,5-T), a synthetic auxin, is a chlorophenoxy acetic acid herbicide used to defoliate broad-leafed plants. It was developed in the late 1940s, synthesized by reaction of 2,4,5-trichlorophenol ...

The

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an independent agency of the United States government tasked with environmental protection matters. President Richard Nixon proposed the establishment of EPA on July 9, 1970; it began operation on De ...

has moved to rescind its approval due to conflicting claims from the manufacturer about synergistic effects from mixing the two herbicides. Dow had told the EPA that the combination of the two herbicides did not enhance their toxicity to plants, but an earlier

patent application A patent application is a request pending at a patent office for the grant of a patent for an invention described in the patent specification and a set of one or more claim (patent), claims stated in a formal document, including necessary officia ...

from Dow claimed that it did.

References

{{reflist, 2

External links

Enlist Weed Control System

Herbicides Genetic engineering Genetically modified organisms in agriculture Dow Chemical Company