Glyphosate ban reduced corn production by 1.6 million tonnes in just one year in Mexico
Brazil
Anvisa rejects the toxicological evaluation of three new formulated products – with an active ingredient not yet registered in Brazil – from Gowan: a product based on cyproconazole + prothioconazole + fluindapyr, and two products based on fluindapyr + mancozeb + prothioconazole. (Anvisa)
Agricultural Defense Agency from the State of Goiás – Agrodefesa advises farmers about Ibama’s restrictions on pesticides based on thiamethoxam and fipronil. “It is necessary for farmers to follow the new label and leaflet recommendations, as defined by Ibama, and described in the agronomic recommendation”, said the agricultural inputs coordinator of the Plant Health Management at Agrodefesa, Márcio de Oliveira e Silva. President of Agrodefesa, José Caixeta Ramos, said that it is the Agency’s role to “promote actions that encourage responsible use, especially in relation to pollinating insects. Therefore, in addition to maintaining a coordination of agricultural inputs, we also have a state health program for bees with the aim of strengthening the beekeeping chain in the State of Goiás”. (Agrodefesa)
In February, fertilizer negotiations reached 51% of the expected volume, presenting a considerable delay in relation to the average for the period over the last three years. Fertilizer negotiations for delivery in the 2H of 2024 are also showing a tendency for delays. (StoneX Consulting)
According to Lucas Alves, research specialist at Kynetec, the area treated with biological products showed significant growth for the main crops during 2022/23. Soybean accounted for 69% of the total potential treated area (PAT) for biologicals, reaching 77.108 million hectares. After soybeans, the most relevant crops were off-season corn, with 18% of the total, or 20.6 million hectares, and sugar cane, with 7%, or 7.5 million hectares. (Kynetec Brasil)
Ministry of Agriculture published Act No. 8 of deliberations on pesticides post-registration, from February 26th of 2024, with 6 pesticide registration cancellations, 53 import authorizations, 6 transfers of product ownership, etc. (MAPA)
Luciane Morandi is the new product development and registration specialist at Proventis Lifescience. (Proventis Lifescience)
Bill No. 5080 of 2023 bans use of pesticides containing atrazine in Brazil. Proposal is under analysis at the Lower House of Congress. “Atrazine can cause illness even at very low doses, making the stated safety limits ineffective in protecting workers. In addition, inspection and monitoring are difficult to promote…”, said the author of the bill, congressman João Carlos Siqueira, also known as Father João. (Agência Câmara de Notícias)
ICL announced acquisition of Nitro 1000, manufacturer and supplier of bioinputs, with an investment of US$ 30 million. Objective is to expand the portfolio of biological products in Brazil and increase mineral manufacturing capacity. Company predicts that new biological products will be launched soon, in 2024: “Those will be inoculants mainly focused on soybean, corn and sugarcane crops, which replace or optimize the use of fertilizers…”, says Ithamar Prada, vice president of Marketing & Innovation at ICL. (ICL)
In compliance with a court decision, Anvisa approved the toxicological evaluation of pesticides glyphosate 720 g/kg WG (Xingfa & Wenda); lufenuron 50 g/L EC (Perterra); clomazone 500 g/L EC (Rainbow); trifloxystrobin + cyproconazole (Rainbow); glufosinate – ammonium salt (Syncrom). (Anvisa)
Alison Rampazzo is the new commercial director of Sumitomo’s West Brazil Business Unit, and will lead a team of six regional managers operating in States of Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Rondônia and Pará. (Sumitomo Chemical)
Petrobras and Yara Brasil signed an agreement to evaluate business deals, which includes studying potential partnerships in fertilizers, production of industrial products and decarbonization of production processes. The established Memorandum of Understanding is “non-binding in nature and is aligned with the strategic elements of the Strategic Plan 2024-28+, which aim to prepare Petrobras for a more sustainable future, contributing to the success of energy transition”, according to a note from Petrobras. (Petrobras; Yara Brasil)
Anvisa published withdrawal of toxicological evaluation, by request of registrant companies, for 11 pesticide products, of which 9 are from Tradecorp. (Anvisa)
Team coordinated by researcher Janaína Pereira dos Santos, from the Agricultural Research and Rural Extension Company of the State of Santa Catarina, discovered a new insect pest in Santa Catarina, the species Zaprionus tuberculatus. “For fruit farming, this exotic pest represents a potential risk, as it is a generalist species that efficiently exploits both native and exotic fruit trees”, said the researcher. “So far, the research results reinforce the need to monitor Z. tuberculatus in the State, to evaluate its impacts, distribution, and establish future control programs for the species”. (Epagri)
Fertilizer deliveries to the Brazilian market had a growth of 11.6% in 2023, totaling 45.82 million tonnes. (ANDA)
Vice-president of Brazil, Geraldo Alckmin, said that Petrobras should make an “effort” to reduce prices charged for natural gas, the main input for production of nitrogen fertilizers. “An effort needs to be made, and I am sure that Petrobras will do so, to make the cost of natural gas lower. This effort to reduce input [prices] is important”, said the vice-president and minister of Industry and Commerce. (Government of Brazil)
Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Fávaro, held a meeting with the board of directors of the Brazilian Association of Bioinput Industries – Abinbio. “This is a very important subject. It is a path towards the sustainable advancement of Brazilian agriculture. Bioinputs will certainly play a big role in our future development and you can count on the support of the Ministry of Agriculture”, said the minister. “The meeting was very important for the Brazilian bioinput industry. We are very aligned. We want to encourage bioinputs to grow in Brazil and increasingly make up the farmer’s portfolio of technologies”, according to the president of Abinbio, Marcelo Godoy. (Abinbio)
Gabriel Uehara is the new RD&I and regulatory affairs coordinator at the fertilizer company TMF Fertilizantes. (TMF Fertilizantes)
On March 06th, the Agriculture Commission of the Federal Senate will analyze the project that creates the Fertilizer Industry Development Program – Profert. Proposal grants a series of tax benefits to promote fertilizer production. (Agência Senado)
According to Luís Ribeiro, executive director of the National Association of Phytosanitary Products Companies – Aenda, some important points that changed with the Pesticides Law No. 14785/23 were: “The implementation of the GHS system for process analysis; the implementation of defined deadlines for obtaining conclusion for different processes; the approval of Special Temporary Registration only for new products; no need for efficacy studies for equivalent products with the same type of formulation, same indication of use and type of application already registered; end of registration of components”. (Aenda)
According to Ibama, the decision to “restrict the use of thiamethoxam-based pesticides, announced on February 22, is an example of how the reevaluation process carried out by the Institute can result in the protection of millions of bees and other pollinating insects. Restriction of the use of a certain substance occurs when, upon re-examination of an active ingredient or component present in pesticides registered in Brazil, signs of risks are found that advise against its use, or when there is a warning to the country in this regard. The new Pesticides Law No. 14785/2023 called this process reanalysis”. (Ibama)
Latin America
Agronomist Victor Scotton Leal is the new B2C commercial vice president at ICL South America, leaving the position of B2B business director at the company. (ICL South America)
National Health and Agro-Food Quality Service of Argentina has launched a digital system for managing the registration of phytosanitary products, which seeks to eliminate bottlenecks in registration procedures. There are currently around 6,000 pending cases, with delays of up to five years. “There is still a lot to deregulate,” said Pablo Lafuente, marketing manager at Spraytec, a company specializing in application technology and foliar fertilizers. “The system needs to be remade. This no longer works”, said Lafuente. (Spraytec; Senasa)
Ministry of Health, together with the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and Ministry of Environment and Energy of Costa Rica are developing a new protocol to guide public officials on the appropriate risk management, registration, use and control of pesticides. “We are happy to have an ideal mechanism to manage risks associated with the registration, use and control of agricultural pesticides in the country. The main objective is to educate our employees in the identification, analysis, evaluation and management of these risks, ensuring food safety, health and care for the environment”, said vice-president and Minister of Health, Mary Munive. (Ministry of Health)
Glyphosate ban reduced corn production by 1.6 million tonnes in just one year in Mexico. Mexican Union of Agrochemical Manufacturers and Formulators has warned that the ban on the pesticide will cause great difficulties for farmers, reducing yields, increasing production costs, and raising food prices. (UMFFAAC)
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