Jessica Goldberger
Program on Agricultural Technology Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Jeanne Merrill
Michael Fields Agricultural Institute.
Terrance Hurley
Department of Applied Economics, University of Minnesota.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reregistered Bt corn in 2001 with mandatory insect resistance management (IRM) requirements in order to promote sustainable use by farmers. Since then studies have reported IRM compliance rates ranging from 79% to 96%. Using survey data from Minnesota and Wisconsin, we show that previous compliance rate estimates are likely too high because they do not use a comprehensive measure for compliance. With a more comprehensive measure, we find compliance rates ranging between 72% and 76%. We also explore the relationship between IRM awareness, farm size, and IRM compliance.

Key words: Bt corn, compliance, insect resistance management, refuge.