Crop Protection and Nutrition – Weekly Update Brazil & Latin America (03/27/25 – 04/02/25)

Resolution of the Federal Council of Engineering and Agronomy seeks to “establish guidelines for the prescription, use and inspection of the Agronomic Prescription in the Confea/Crea System, ensuring the correct application of technical and ethical principles in the control of biological targets, use of pesticides and environmental control products, in accordance with Law No. 14785, of December 27th of 2023″. (Confea)

José Victor da Costa, general coordinator of pesticides and related products at the Ministry of Agriculture, and Marina Pires, head of the Technical Product Registration Division, will participate in the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions, to be held in Geneva, Switzerland, from April 26th to May 13th, 2025. (MAPA)

EuroChem plans to double the production of phosphate fertilizers at its factory in Alto Paranaíba, State of Minas Gerais. The company, which closed 2024 with a volume between 450,000 and 500,000 tonnes, plans to end 2025 with up to 900,000 tonnes. (Eurochem)

Anvisa approved toxicological evaluation of a New Microbiological Product – with an active ingredient not yet registered in Brazil, based on Plutella xylostella granulovirus from Andermatt. (Anvisa)

Fertilizer market is facing a scenario of high costs, but with expectations of an increase in input deliveries in 2025. Fertilizer deliveries are expected to grow 2% compared to 2024, reaching approximately 46.6 million tonnes. This increase reflects firm demand, driven by the good outlook for the grain harvest, although input prices, such as phosphate, remain high. (Rabobank)

To avoid the introduction of “carambola fruit fly” (Bactrocera carambolae) into the State of Goiás, the State’s Agricultural Defense Agency conducts continuous phytosanitary surveys, with 40 traps installed in strategic areas, such as in transit points for cargo and people coming from regions where the insect is present. Currently present in the States of Amapá, Pará and Roraima, the pest has a wide range of hosts, attacking fruits such as carambola, citrus, guava, mango and papaya. (Agrodefesa)

Felippe Oliveira is the new commercial director of Bience Agriscience, a plant nutrition and physiology company. (Bience Agriscience)

Nutriplant had a 193% profit increase in 2024, reaching US$ 1.79 million. Net revenue reached US$ 34.82 million, an annual increase of 11.8%. (Nutriplant)

Biosphera AgroSolutions has launched a broad-spectrum microbiological fungicide and bactericide based on Bacillus velezensis BV02. According to agronomist Isabela Gato, from R&D department, the solution induces natural resistance in plants. (Biosphera AgroSolutions)

Congressmen from the State of Mato Grosso approved a reduction in the minimum distance for spraying pesticides on farms close to river sources and villages. The distance for application was reduced to zero on small-sized farms. On medium-sized farms, the protective distance will be 25 meters. On large-sized farms, the minimum distance will be 90 meters. (ClimaInfo)

In compliance with court decisions, Anvisa approved the toxicological evaluation of Chlorfenapyr 240 g/L SC and Imidacloprid 700 g/kg WG from Rainbow; 2,4-D-triethanolamine 411 + picloram-triethanolamine 106.75 g/L SL from Lemma; and prothioconazole 200 + metominostrobin 200 g/L SC from Iharabras. (Anvisa)

Research performed by Embrapa, in collaboration with international scientists, has identified 60 new species of psyllids in different biomes in Brazil, including the Amazon, the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado. The results were published in the scientific journal Zootaxa. (Embrapa)

Prices of potassium have increased and phosphate remain stable at the beginning of 2025. In February, potassium chloride (KCl) prices rose by 5.7%, and in the first 15 days of March, the price increased further, reaching US$ 335 per tonne. Phosphates remained practically stable in February and early March. On the other hand, nitrogen prices fell, mainly due to the increase in supply. Urea was quoted at US$ 395 per tonne at the ports, marking a reduction of 6.5% when compared to the first 15 days of March. (Itaú BBA)

Embrapa has published a list of the main nematodes of soybeans. The cyst nematode, Heterodera glycines, the root-knot nematodes, Meloidogyne spp., the root lesion nematode, Pratylenchus brachyurus, the reniform nematode, Rotylenchulyus reniformis and the green stem nematode, Aphelenchoides besseyi, are the causes of the greatest damage to soybean farms in Brazil. (Embrapa Soja)

Agrolend raised US$ 17.48 million in only 15 days to finance UPL. The structured credit for the Indian company is the largest ever made by Agrolend since it began working with corporate credit. (Agrolend)

The dispute between Bayer and Brazilian soybean farmers has taken a new turn. According to Anderson Nacaxe, CEO at Oken.Finance, the company obtained an injunction suspending a decision that required reimbursement of royalties paid on expired patents for the Intacta RR2 PRO technology. Bayer argues that collecting royalties is essential to finance new research and innovation in agribusiness. “Bayer appealed the decision of the First Instance Court Judge, who intends to correct the terms of certain patents related to the INTACTA RR2 PRO soybean technology, as well as the decision on the merits of the case…”, according to an official statement from Bayer. (Oken.Finance; Bayer)

Kynetec Brasil has just released its annual “FarmTrak Sugarcane” study, with data from 2024. During the period, the agrochemical market for sugarcane fell 18%, to US$ 1.3 billion. The potential treated area by the products increased 4%, totaling 83.7 million hectares. According to Kynetec’s research specialist Lucas Alves, the decline in the financial movement of sugarcane pesticides follows the 22% drop in product prices over the last year. (Kynetec Brasil)

Fertilizer prices continue to rise and worsen the exchange rate with soybeans in 2025/26 for Brazilian farmers. According to Jeferson Souza, fertilizer analyst at Agrinvest Commodities, the price of monoammonium phosphate rose by US$ 90 per tonne from March 2024 to March 2025. “And soybean prices did not rise during this period; on the contrary, the price of soybeans in dollars is a little lower than it was. And so, the ratio is moving a little further away from the historical average”, said Souza. (Agrinvest Commodities)

The second edition of the event “Biosolutions for Agriculture” will take place between June 11th and 13th, in Campo Grande, State of Mato Grosso do Sul. Promoted by the company Desafios Agro, it will address topics such as remineralizers, biofertilizers, inoculants, biostimulants, bioherbicides and biological application technology. (Desafios Agro)

Fertilizantes Heringer reported a net loss of US$ 114.26 million in the 4Q24, compared to a net loss of US$ 5.47 million in the 4Q23, an increase of almost 21 times. Net revenue in the period was US$ 240 million. (Fertilizantes Heringer)

The National Union of Plant Protection Products Industry – Sindiveg Sindiveg  has launched content about biological control on its platform of free courses, developed in partnership with a researcher from Embrapa. As explained by the Regulatory Affairs Manager at Sindiveg, Fábio Kagi, the course goes into detail on how biological control works and its different approaches, highlighting the role of macro and microorganisms in controlling pests. It also discusses the relevance of bioinputs and the regulation of these products in Brazil. (Sindiveg)

Two farmers from Itaquiraí, State of Mato Grosso do Sul, will receive compensation of US$ 37.5 thousand for material damages, after an agricultural aviation company hired by a sugarcane mill spilled pesticides on the farmers’ cassava crops. The decision was made unanimously by the 5th Civil Chamber of the Court of Justice of Mato Grosso do Sul. (TJMS)

Adama has adopted a new technology that replaces the usual barriers of pesticide packages with innovation that improves recyclability, reducing dependence on materials that are difficult to recycle. “Instead of using additional physical layers, this technology modifies the internal surface of the packaging at the molecular level, creating an ultra-thin layer that prevents the active ingredient from permeating”, said Danilo Bianchi, the company’s Safety, Health and Environment manager. (Adama)

Ports of Paraná have received the largest cargo of fertilizers from a single shipment. The ship Red Marlin set a new record at the Port of Paranaguá. The vessel, coming from China, docked on March 26th to unload 78,054 tonnes of fertilizers, surpassing the previous record set on November 5th, 2024, when the same ship brought 76,696 tonnes. (Ports of Paraná)

According to a survey elaborated by the maritime agency Williams Brasil, the import of 5.302 million tonnes of fertilizers was scheduled for the period from March 1st to 24th. The majority of this is expected to be unloaded through the port of Paranaguá, State of Paraná. The report takes into account vessels already anchored, those offshore awaiting docking, and those scheduled to arrive by May 26th, 2025. (Williams Brasil)