Asulox approved for bracken control in England for 2023
© Adobe Stock/AngieC The selective herbicide Asulox has been reauthorised to control bracken this season on farms in England only, so far.
Simon Thorp, co-ordinator of the Bracken Control Group (BCG), said Defra notified him last Friday (16 June) that his group’s application for emergency authorisation for use of Asulox (asulam) to control bracken this season had been successful in England.
The approval by Defra means farmers in England will be able to use Asulox from 1 July to control bracken – a poisonous weed linked to the spread of Lyme disease, a bacterial infection spread to humans by infected ticks.
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Details of the approval for England were sent to the BCG by Defra on Monday (19 June).
The industry is waiting for a response from the other home nations – Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – over whether they too will approve Asulox for bracken control this season.
Mr Thorp said: “We are delighted that Asulox has been granted permission for use to control bracken in England.
“We very much hope that it will be approved for use in all other parts of the UK.”
Asulox has continued to be authorised by the Chemicals Regulation Division (CRD), a directorate of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), for bracken control in the UK on annual basis under emergency licences since the 2013 season.