News

Investigation determines single source of Palmer infestation

An investigation by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) has determined a single source is responsible for 13 known infestations of Palmer amaranth.

MDA director of plant protection Geir Friisoe says 30 CRP plantings infested with the invasive weed were planted with seed from Green Valley Seed of Cottonwood, Minnesota.

“We did not actually find Palmer amaranth in the seed mixes that were sold.  What the violations involved was that Green Valley Seed did not have a Minnesota Seed Permit at the time.”

The investigation went on to conclude Green Valley Seed sourced seed from Texas, but mislabeled the origin as Minnesota.

Friisoe tells Brownfield various discrepancies were found on documents, with fines and penalty conditions proposed and agreed to by the company.

He says the Department is doing everything it can to ensure Palmer does NOT get a foothold in Minnesota.

“Landowners and farmers should be on the lookout for unusually large, robust pigweed species that could signal that they have Palmer amaranth.”

Although there is only one confirmed pathway at this point, Friisoe says Palmer amaranth could also be spread by contaminated farm equipment coming from infested areas south of Minnesota.