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Farmers plagued by crop-killing herbicide Dicamba not covered for losses, says Risk Management Agency

Country Financial, a farm insurer, based in Bloomington, Illinois, has seen an increase in the number of dicamba-related inquiries.

By Mario Parker | Updated on August 02, 2017
In this Tuesday, July 11, 2017, photo, East Arkansas soybean farmer Reed Storey looks at his field in Marvell, Ark. Storey said half of his soybean crop has shown damage from dicamba, an herbicide that has drifted onto unprotected fields and spawned hundreds of complaints from farmers. (AP Photo/Andrew DeMillo)

(Bloomberg) – Larry Martin in Illinois says he’s never seen anything like it in his 35 years of farming. Arkansas soybean grower Joe McLemore says he faces the loss of his life savings.

They’re among farmers across the U.S. suffering from a pesticide “drifting” across from neighboring fields onto their crops, leaving behind a trail of damage. Although not a new problem, it’s re-emerged with a vengeance this year. At least 2.5 million acres (1 million hectares) have been damaged in this growing season through mid-July, according to estimates from Kevin Bradley, a professor of plant sciences at the University of Missouri.

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