In a simple, common-sense ruling, Health Canada decided in 2010 to no longer allow the coupling of pesticides and fertilizers in combination products. In other words, they can no longer be sold as one combined product, commonly known as "weed-and-feed." This ruling was consistent with a general trend among Canada's provinces and municipalities to discourage the use of all cosmetic herbicides, offering what constitutes a virtual a federal stamp of approval of the trend.

Ontario Leads the Way

Among those provincial precursors of the federal ban is Ontario's strict ban on cosmetic herbicides in 2009. As reported by the Toronto Star: "The Ontario ban goes far beyond what other provincial and state governments have done limiting the use of pesticides, herbicides, and insecticides. The vast majority are abiding by the rules, and [an Ontario Environment Ministry] study of 10 urban streams shows an 80 percent drop in the three most common chemicals found in pesticides."

That said, the paper also reported that opposition to the Ontario ban is strong and that some consumers manage to buy weed-and-feed products in the United States and get them through Canadian Customs on their return.

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, which has reported a rise in children being affected by toxic chemicals, lauded Ontario's ban as: "The best in North America—in terms of health protection. It takes about 250 toxic products off the market so that children, in particular, are not exposed to them."

Understanding Weed-and-Feed Products

To understand both the provincial ban and the newer 2010 federal move, it's essential to better understand the product. A weed-and-feed product is a combined herbicide and fertilizer in one product that is intended to kill weeds and feed the grass at the same time. However, the proper timing of fertilizer applications (starting early in the season) generally does not coincide with the ideal timing for killing weeds (usually later in the season after they have appeared). Also, broadleaf weed killers like the powerful 2,4-D end up being applied, or "broadcast," to the entire lawn, even to areas where it's unnecessary. Fertilizers and herbicides are two very different products, and combining them makes little sense.

Who Does the Federal Ban Affect?

The 2010 federal ban covers all "fine turf," which applies to all residential, commercial, and recreational turf, such as golf courses, which up to that point were usually exempt from pesticide laws. It does not apply to agricultural uses of fertilizer-pesticide combination products (turf farms) or products that have a single active material that has both fertilizer and pesticidal properties.

The federal ban avoids the political lightning rod of enumerating the specific health risks, instead offering the reasoning that weed-and-feed products "do not support the goals of best practices for pest management in turf."

The Crux of the Ban

On the timing issue, federal regulation has this to say:

"Pesticides should only be used when and where there is a need. Broadcast applications of pesticides over the whole area are warranted only for severe pest infestations that are widespread. As pest infestations are typically patchy, spot applications of pesticides to those areas are most often sufficient to ensure adequate control in turf.

To be effective, fertilizers and pesticides must each be applied at the appropriate timings, which typically do not coincide. Fertilizers are most often applied in spring or early summer, and/or in late summer or fall.

These products are unsuitable as a delivery mechanism because they support the broadcast application of the pesticide when this might not be warranted. Ultimately, fertilizer and pesticide applications should be based on need. Fertilizer should only be used if the turf will benefit from additional nutrients, and pesticides should only be used as a broadcast treatment if the pest densities are sufficiently high across the area to be treated. Targeted, well-timed liquid formulations of pesticides minimize pesticide use on the lawn and turf sites."

In Canada, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) regulates pesticides under the Pest Control Products Act, including those intended for lawn and turf uses. Fertilizer-pesticide combination products are regulated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency under the Fertilizers Act.

Reasons to Avoid Weed-and-Feed

Commentators both in Canada and the U.S. have called the weed-and-feed solution a perfect example of lawn care companies marketing a bad product. With the lure of convenience and the assurance of clever marketing, consumers are misled into using weed-and-feed products, which is not the best practice for efficient lawn care.

It should be noted, though, that most of the individual ingredients in both lawn fertilizers and most weed herbicides are both still available legally in Canada. Homeowners can still apply the same chemical solutions, but by prohibiting weed-and-feed products, Canadian law encourages homeowners to apply them when they are most effective—spring and early summer for fertilizers, later in the summer for weed herbicides. However, a number of herbicidal chemicals are no longer legally available at all in Canada.

The U.S. is somewhat more relaxed in the list of chemicals allowed in commercial herbicides. Critics argue that this is evidence of the undue influence exercised by the American chemical industry on government agencies such as the U.S Environmental Protection Agency. Not only are U.S. products allowed to use chemicals that other nations have deemed dangerous, but these chemicals can be included in products that do not provide for efficient use of those chemicals. Supporters and chemical industry advocates argue that restrictions on chemicals not yet to be proven health issues would be an undue exercise of government regulation.

The 2, 4-D Controversy

Principal among the herbicidal chemicals outlawed in Canada, Australia, and other nations, but which are still routinely used in the lawn-care products produced and sold in the U.S. is 2, 4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid).

Warning The World Health Agency's International Agency for Research on Cancer has deemed 2, 4-D to be a "possible carcinogen," and some generic 2, 4-D products have been shown to be contaminated with small amounts of dioxin, a known and very serious carcinogen. And some early studies suggest that industry workers involved in the manufacture of 2, 4D are at risk for abnormally shaped sperm and thus fertility problems.

It remains to be seen if 2, 4-D, like DDT and glyphosate before them, will prove to be a serious health concern, but thus far, the U.S. EPA has no restrictions on its use. The agency does, however, caution that safety depends on following precise product-use instructions.

While 2, 4-D is still allowed in the United States, homeowners who feel that the benefits outweigh the possible dangers can, at least, voluntarily minimize environmental risks. The most responsible use of these chemicals is by spot-treating weeds when they appear, rather than by broadly spreading chemicals like 2, 4-D at the wrong time in unnecessary weed-and-feed products.