A coalition of leading agricultural organizations today sent a letter to Lee Zeldin, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), urging the agency to uphold its rigorous, science-based pesticide registration process and ensure timely reviews under federal law.
The letter expresses support for the goals of the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement and the MAHA Commission’s Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy, while emphasizing that access to safe, effective, and innovative crop protection tools is essential to achieving those goals. The organizations highlight that science-based pesticide approvals are critical not only to food security and affordability, but also to the long-term sustainability of U.S. agriculture enabling growers to protect yields, use inputs efficiently, reduce losses, and continue investing in environmental stewardship and innovation.
The undersigned groups emphasize the importance of EPA meeting its statutory obligations under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA). They note that prolonged delays in pesticide registrations and approvals place U.S. farmers at a competitive disadvantage, limit access to new technologies, and undermine the ability of producers across sectors to sustainably meet consumer demand.
Statements from Participating Organizations
American Farm Bureau Federation
“Farmers take seriously our responsibility to use crop protection tools responsibly to ensure safe, healthy food. EPA’s rigorous review process and reliance on sound science to approve these products gives us confidence they can be safely applied,” said American Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall. “Under this proven process, growers need timely approvals of critical herbicides, insecticides, and other pesticide products to prevent bugs and weeds from destroying the crops that feed America.”
American Soybean Association
“Pesticides approved by EPA undergo extensive scientific review to ensure they meet strict safety and efficacy standards, and timely, predictable reviews under federal law are essential so farmers can access innovative tools and remain competitive and sustainable,” said Scott Metzger, president of the American Soybean Association and Ohio farmer. “For soybean farmers, these tools are critical to protecting yields, managing weed resistance, and continuing to produce safe, affordable food, feed, and fuel for consumers at home and around the world.”
International Fresh Produce Association
“Our growers have experienced an erosion of available tools to help grow the fruits, vegetables, and florals consumers expect from our industry. To remedy this, EPA should do more to encourage and incentivize registration of products for specialty crop uses. This would dramatically improve the trajectory on new uses and tolerances,” said IFPA CEO Cathy Burns. “This is even more important now with the Make America Healthy Again movement’s focus on food and sustainability. All methods of fresh produce and floral production contribute to an abundant food supply. Each approach has its place, and each relies on science-based tools to manage pests, protect crops, and reduce food loss.”
The full letter was submitted to EPA on February 5, 2026, and reflects broad alignment across agricultural sectors on the need for regulatory certainty, timely decision-
About the American Farm Bureau Federation
The American Farm Bureau Federation is the nation’s largest general farm organization. We are a farmer-led organization with more than five million members nationwide. We are farm and ranch families working together to build a sustainable future of safe and abundant food, fiber and renewable fuel for our nation and the world.
About the American Soybean Association
The American Soybean Association (ASA) represents U.S. soybean farmers on domestic and international policy issues important to the soybean industry. ASA has 26 affiliated state associations representing 30 soybean-producing states and nearly 500,000 soybean farmers.
About the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA)
The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) is the largest and most diverse international association serving the entire fresh produce and floral supply chain and the only to seamlessly integrate world-facing advocacy and industry-facing support. We exist to bring the industry together to create a vibrant future for all. We grow our members’ prosperity by conducting advocacy, connecting people and ideas; and offering guidance that allows us all to take action with purpose and confidence. IFPA represents member companies from small family businesses to the largest international corporations throughout the global fresh fruit and vegetable supply chain, including growers, shippers, fresh-cut processors, wholesalers, distributors, retailers, foodservice operators, industry suppliers and allied associations.
