Some Sask. producers feeling left out following strychnine approval

Producers in RM of 102 Lake Johnston say the gopher problem got worse after poison ban, while the new approval does not cover their area. Mick Favel reports.

Despite strychnine being temporarily available for producers, a number of areas will be unable to use the chemical despite large gopher populations.

Darren Gosling is a producer and a councillor for the RM of Lake Johnson. He said gopher numbers have gone up since the ban of strychnine.

“We had way better control when we had strychnine. I used it earlier in my farming days and you tell the areas that were treated,” he explained.

The Government of Canada is allowing a time-limited and controlled emergency registration of the pesticide in Saskatchewan and Alberta.

A select number of RM’s have been chosen to be able to use strychnine until November 2027.

Gosling said Lake Johnson has a severe gopher problem. He and others from his farm have spent time and resources trying to manage the population.

“We’re going out taking these machines and spending probably two-thirds of a day treating and shooting. Doing whatever we can to save our crop,” he said.

The RM of Mariposa was also not included on the list.

Jeremy Welter is the Reeve of Mariposa. He said a crop insurance claim was filed in the area for 140 acres of canola.

“Every single canola seed that had germinated and come out of the ground had immediately been nipped off,” he said.

“Very similar to locusts, the gophers just completely decimated an entire field of canola.”

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Drought has been an issue for parts of Saskatchewan. This has attributed to the growth of the gopher population.

Gosling said the gophers are just one of the issues producers are thinking about right now. Tariffs, fuel, and the weather are also major factors contributing to agriculture success.

“We need such big yields now to break even. This is one of my major concerns is our margins are so tight. We need to grow such a big crop to cover our end,”

Those who are currently confirmed to use strychnine can do so starting in July.