Bayer invests in saving water project of citrus crops in Brazil

Bayer CropScience, through its team responsible for citrus crops, recently created a pioneer project which could save 2,000 liters of water per hectare in crops of oranges.

The project was carried out on 40 trees within 33 farms in the Sao Paulo area, with the application of Winner® insecticide applied directly to the trunks of the trees without adding water. This method ensured greater efficiency in the management of the vector insect that transmits the greening disease to orchards, one of the main threats to citrus plants which cause high damage to orange groves in the State of São Paulo.

Other advantages include the reduction of necessary applications, compared to foliar treatment, representing less fuel costs (8 /Reales/ha) and the reduction of CO2 emissions (0.02 ton/ha). In addition, the project promotes greater water saving and contributes to the conservation of pollinating insects beneficial to the crop.

The work showed that, if all the plantations from Sao Paulo apply this method of management, about 1.4 billion gallons of water would be spared in the production of oranges. According to Adriana Ricci, Manager of Stewardship of Bayer Crop Science, the line of research that Bayer follows in their designs and products are focused on environmental practices for the preservation of natural resources. "We are always committed to issues involving the environment and are thinking of conscious and efficient ways to collaborate the use of water and other resources," she said.