With more than 15,000 licensed agriculture pesticide applicators, Illinois Department of Ag (IDOA), Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association (IFCA) and industry groups have undertaken a massive effort to ensure proper training for anyone and everyone who might apply dicamba products in 2018.

Although applicators are required to have training, IFCA and IDOA encourage everyone who plants dicamba tolerant soybeans to attend a class and understand the careful approach that must be taken to successfully steward this technology.

IDOA approved the training materials for the 90-minute classes to ensure quality and consistency.

Those completing the training receive a certificate, which will assist the applicator in meeting one of the new recordkeeping requirements included on the product labels for 2018.

For a complete list of training dates and locations, along with dicamba labels and other resources, please visit https://www.ifca.com/IllinoisDicambaTraining.

You must pre-register to attend a training class: https://www.ifca.com/IllinoisDicambaTraining/Register

Frequently Asked Questions
IMPORTANT: Only three dicamba products are approved for use on soybeans in Illinois:

• Engenia® (BASF is the registrant)
• XtendiMax® with Vapor Grip Technology (Monsanto is the registrant)
• FeXapan® with Vapor Grip Technology (DuPont is the registrant)

These products are Restricted Use Pesticides and can only be purchased and used by certified applicators (private applicators and commercial applicators, and operators working under their direct supervision).

Who needs training?
Prior to applying any of these three dicamba products, the applicator must complete dicamba training. For private applicators (farmers) this includes the person who holds the private applicator license and any person who works under the private applicators’ supervision when applying the product. For commercial applicators, both the licensed commercial applicator and the licensed commercial operator who works under the supervision of the commercial applicator must have the training before applying the product. This training requirement applies to applications made to soybeans, and to applications on any other crops listed on these product labels.

Do I need to complete training before I purchase these products?
Certified applicators (both private and commercial) do not need to complete training to purchase the products, but you must complete training before applying the products. If another person who applies the product is working under the direct supervision of the private or commercial applicator, that person must also attend the dicamba trainingwe encourage this person to also attend dicamba training.

What type of dicamba training materials will be accepted in Illinois?
Pursuant to the USEPA approved labels for 2018, applicators must complete the aforementioned training provided by one of the following sources:
(a) a registrant of a dicamba product approved for in-crop use with dicamba tolerant crops, or (b) a state or state-authorized provider. At this time, Monsanto and BASF have developed dicamba training materials and only these materials are approved for dicamba training purposes in Illinois to meet the training requirement.

Do I have to attend a training session specific to the product I will use?
No. The training materials are not product-specific, meaning that regardless of whether you intend to apply Engenia, XtendiMax or FeXapan, any training session you attend that uses the materials developed by any of the registrants will fulfill your training needs.

Who can provide training?
Because the training materials were developed by the registrants, only instructors who are approved by the registrants can provide the training.

What kind of training will be offered?
In Illinois, the ag industry and the registrants of the products are working together to provide classroom training on dicamba use. A list of training classes is available on this website. There is no charge to attend these classes, but you should pre-register on the website to ensure you have a seat in the class.

How long is the training?
The training will last from 60-90 minutes depending upon the number of questions and audience participation.

What does the training cover?
The training will cover the product application requirements, recordkeeping requirements, weed management practices, buffer requirements and protection of susceptible crops, chemistry, mixing and handling, window of application, equipment preparation and special considerations.

Do I have to take an exam?
No, the class is instruction, review, and open question and answer session.

Will I receive a certificate after completing the training?
The instructor will maintain a roster of those attending the class and will collect the applicator’s name, address and email. Once the class is completed, you will receive an email from the instructor that contains a certification of completion, including your name, the date you received training, and the location where you received training. If you do not have an email account, the instructor can provide you with a printed certificate after the class or will mail you a certificate.

Will I need to keep the training certificate?
Yes. For each application of dicamba you make using any of the three products, you must include a copy of your certificate of training along with the record of application.

Is the training one-time or do I need training every year?
If these products continue to be registered for use after 2018, training may be an annual requirement. USEPA will have to approve the continued use of these products after December 2018, and the training requirement may be revisited at that time. For now, you must complete training to use these products in Illinois in 2018.

Will my applicator license be amended to show that I’ve received training?
No. You must retain your certificate of training with your own personal records, and include a copy of the certificate with each record of application. Pesticide dealers are not required to see the proof of training prior to selling the product to certified applicators.

Will the Illinois Department of Ag check my records?
The Illinois Department of Ag has the authority, under the Illinois Pesticide Act, to request to see your record of pesticide purchases, application and, as part of any dicamba application of these products, the proof of training record. The practice of checking these records is normally associated with a misuse investigation.

Will my training in Illinois be accepted if I apply dicamba in other states?
We do not have an answer to this question yet. The Departments of Agriculture in each state must determine if reciprocity will be allowed. If you plan to apply dicamba in a neighboring state, you could contact that State Department of Agriculture to inquire about the dicamba training requirements in that state.

More information about the dicamba use on genetically engineered crops can be found on the USEPA website.