BASF obtains registration of Heat herbicide for coffee in Brazil

BASF announced last week that it has obtained the registration of its Heat herbicide to control weeds in coffee plantations in Brazil. The product, which is already being used in the country to control weeds in sugarcane, corn and soybeans, is now available to control broad-leaved weeds that threaten coffee plantations.

Heat is a conditional selective herbicide of contact, which contains the active ingredient with common name Saflufenacil, which belongs to the chemical group pyrimidinedione. Registered under the global brand Kixor, it is a molecule with flexibility of use regarding the application time. It can be used in the pre-planting application as a directed jet to desiccate the weeds without contact with the plants.

According to the manufacturer, the herbicide also helps in controlling the resistance of weeds to other existing herbicides in the market with different action mechanisms. “The Heat herbicide also promotes operational gains of machinery, which eases and optimizes the harvest, increasing the yields of coffee per hectare,” BASF said in a statement.

The highest incidence of the most common invasive plants of coffee, such as the Argentine fleabane (Conyza bonariensis), the sweet potato (Ipomoea sp.) and the tropical spiderwort (Commelina benghalensis), occurs between the months of October and April, a period in which the yield is greater. “The inadequate management of weeds during the period can affect the coffee yields, as the weeds exert competition, mainly by using the resources such as light, water and nutrient,” highlights Carulina Oliveira, marketing manager of Citrus, Coffee and Peanuts at BASF.