CropLife Retail Week: ESA Rules Are Here: What Ag Retailers Must Know for 2026

ESA (Endangered Species Act) label language is finally landing on crop protection products — and ag retailers are on the front lines helping growers stay compliant for 2026 and beyond. In this special edition of CropLife Retail Week, Eric Sfiligoj sits down with Terry Kippley, President & CEO of CPDA (Council of Producers & Distributors of Agrotechnology), to discuss this important issue.

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*Below is a partial and edited transcript:

Eric Sfiligoj (CropLife Editor)

Hello. Welcome to a special edition of CropLife Retail Week. I’m Eric Sfiligoj, Editor of CropLife and CropLife IRON magazines, here with a special guest, Terry Kippley, President & CEO of the Council of Producers & Distributors of Agrotechnology (CPDA).

If you’re wondering about the sign behind his head—Terry, welcome to the program.

Terry Kippley (President & CEO, CPDA)

Well, thank you so much, Eric.
I was looking up your background before we got on camera today, and I noticed a release saying you’ve been the head of CPDA since 2022. Wow—three years already. That’s a pretty impressive track record.

And I’ve said this many times: I need to give you a big thank-you. You were the first person in the media to come out to our offices in Washington, D.C., and ask questions about CPDA’s vision and what we hoped to accomplish.

I always say that when CropLife magazine talks about what you’re doing, it raises awareness. You guys have been a great partner over the years, helping get the word out as we try to find solutions to help growers solve some big problems the industry is trying to address.

Eric Sfiligoj

It’s been our pleasure. One of the reasons I wanted to have you on is that people may be familiar with the Endangered Species Act—ESA. I’ve been hearing a lot about it in the agricultural community over the last few years. If you could, give us a breakdown of what ESA is and what it means for agriculture moving forward.

Terry Kippley

We’ve been working at CPDA, along with partners like CLA and ARA, on this for nearly three years now. When this started, we realized that growers were facing some of the biggest regulatory changes in maybe 40 years—and they’re coming within a relatively short time frame.

The key point is this: under the Endangered Species Act, growers are now responsible for deciding, field by field, whether they are in compliance with endangered species requirements. As someone who still actively farms outside Madison, Wisconsin, this is something we never had to worry about in the past. Now we do.

Many growers will lean on their trusted local dealer to help interpret these requirements. Growers want to do the right thing and be in compliance. The industry is working to get its arms around these changes as more ESA language gets added to EPA labels.

Eric Sfiligoj

Very good. And if you could give us the state of things today, as we record this in early December 2025: Earlier this year at the 2025 Commodity Classic, several suppliers were touting new products that were already compliant with the new ESA label requirements. Where do things stand now, and what’s coming next?

Terry Kippley

If you think of crop protection tools in three buckets—herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides—then as we plan for spring 2026, new labels for herbicides and insecticides are already including ESA language.

For fungicides, EPA plans to release a draft strategy around Easter 2026, with finalized language expected in fall 2026.

This is handled product by product. New products coming to market must include ESA label language, and existing products going through reregistration will also receive updates.

We’re all working to understand the scope. By spraying season, we may be talking about 10 to 15 products. Everyone is watching EPA closely to understand what growers and applicators must do to stay compliant.

It’s new for everyone—but it is manageable.

Eric Sfiligoj

Earlier you mentioned CPDA’s collaboration with the Agricultural Retailers Association and CropLife America. Tell me more about that effort and what the three organizations hope to accomplish.

Terry Kippley

We like to say collaboration is the new currency. CPDA has a great working relationship with CropLife America and ARA.

We started working closely a year ago, including with your magazine, on the ABCs of ESA, the industry’s first real attempt to organize and explain the issue.

As we prepared for spring 2026, we took what we learned from the one or two products introduced last season and talked with our members who work directly with dealers and growers. We needed to understand what information they need and how to make compliance easier.

CropLife America did a great job creating videos with Dr. Stanley Culpepper from the University of Georgia. Those videos, along with a flow diagram, are available on CropLife America’s website and at CPDA.com. They help applicators understand label language—what to do about drift, runoff, and other key decision points.

There’s also a primer explaining ESA’s history and how we got here.

EPA has also produced a tool called PALM—an Excel-based points calculator. We’re encouraging everyone to use the winter months to help growers think through their fields. Since the number of products with ESA language is still small, it’s manageable, but applicators especially need to be trained so they’ll be compliant come spring.

Eric Sfiligoj

Very good. Terry, before we continue, let’s take a quick break to hear from our sponsor.

[Break]

All right, Terry, let’s continue our conversation about the 2026 report we’re preparing for December.

I’m back with Terry Kippley from CPDA. As you mentioned, we’ve worked extensively with CPDA over the years. When you first joined, I interviewed you, and over the last two years we’ve collaborated on special publications. Last year we created the ABCs of ESA, and this year—in December 2025—we’re releasing the ESA Technical Guide to Mitigation Options, targeting the 2026 season.

What are some key points from that report? And could you also expand on the upcoming fungicide requirements expected around Easter 2026?

Terry Kippley

The ESA Technical Guide coming out in December is a collaboration between CLA, ARA, and CPDA. We want it to be the resource growers and retailers keep on their desks.

It includes clear explanations of ESA requirements, plus guidance on where to find more resources. CPDA members have been deeply involved because some of EPA’s mitigation strategies involve buffer zones.

For example, last year Liberty ULTRA—a very successful herbicide—received a mandatory 10-foot buffer zone. But if you use a drift-reduction adjuvant, that buffer can be reduced to zero. That’s a great win for growers. Drift-reduction adjuvants help ensure the product stays where it’s applied and reduces off-target movement.

EPA has also approved polyacrylamide products, which add two points under the mitigation scoring system. For fields where runoff is a concern, these tools can help growers meet required point thresholds.

So the guide is really a toolkit designed to help growers and retailers comply with ESA.

Eric Sfiligoj

Very good. Terry, we’re coming to the end of our program. I appreciate all the updates on ESA. Up until now, we’ve been publishing “set the table” guides, and we’ll likely do another in 2026 for the fungicide rules. After that, I’m looking forward to talking with growers and ag retailers about their in-field experiences as they adapt to these programs.

Terry, thank you so much for joining us for this edition of CropLife Retail Week. We appreciate your time and the valuable information you’ve shared. And to our viewers, thank you for watching—see you again next week.