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The second “BeSure!” campaign supported by the National Corn Growers Association is off and running through July. The effort is aimed at helping pollinators by promoting best management practices and habitat creation year-round. BeSure! centers on promoting proper use of neonicotinoid (neo-NIH-cuh-tih-noid) products to protect honeybees and other pollinators critical to the food supply and ecosystem. This year, the campaign is seeking to reach not only growers and applicators, but also golf course, turf, and ornamental landscape managers. In its debut year, BeSure! focused its messaging on major crops in the Midwest that utilize neonicotinoid-treated seeds, such as corn and soybeans. This year, the campaign is expanded to include neonicotinoid foliar sprays, soil drenches, and granule uses on fruits, nuts, vegetables, turf tress, and ornamental plants that bees visit regularly. “Neonicotinoids are widely used in agriculture and a variety of landscape and nursery settings,” says Tom Smith, executive director of the National Pesticide Safety Education Center. “Regardless of the application method, product label directions should always be followed, and responsible stewardship practices used to protect pollinators.” Other companies behind the BeSure! Campaign include the American Soybean Association, American Seed Trade Association, CropLife America, and the Agricultural Retailers Association.

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