BASF opens new application technology center to improve testing of crop protection products

BASF has recently opened a new Application Technology Center at its Crop Protection division headquarters in Limburgerhof, Germany. The facility offers a large-scale commercial sprayer set-up, capable of conducting controlled tests of new crop protection products under realistic farming conditions. The new equipment strengthens BASF’s efforts to develop highly robust formulations and foster an easier, safer, and more efficient application of its products.

So far, formulation trials have been conducted on smaller scale. Since crop protection spraying becomes more and more complex, robust plant protection products and their testing according to farmers’ practice however gain importance. Multiple products are mixed in the spray tank and farmers often face time pressure and logistic challenges while spraying. That requires a fast filling process and improved product handling. Therefore, crop protection products must fulfill higher criteria for optimal usage and the best performance. For example, they must be stable when mixed with other products and safe to apply. BASF has opened the new Application Technology Center to strengthen these benefits and further increase the quality of its crop protection products.

“The new Application Technology Center is another step to further improve our formulations. Through the evaluation of the application process in a commercial large scale sprayer, we can optimize the application properties of products towards higher robustness. Farmers will be able to achieve better spraying results. This is important to us, as we want farmers to be able to produce food of higher quality, more efficiently and safely”, explained Lars Wittkowski, Vice President of Global Formulation Development & Analytics at BASF`s Crop Protection division.

The new center will be testing products sold on a global scale for a wide range of crops. The Center is now a permanent part of BASF’s research facilities. To conduct the tests, BASF is utilizing a commercial sprayer provided by John Deere. Both companies in collaboration will use the test results.