Turkey grants registration for Arysta’s iodomethane

Arysta LifeScience announced that Turkey has granted commercial registration for WAPITI 98®, a broad-spectrum soil fumigant based on Iodomethane that effectively controls a broad range of soil-borne diseases, nematodes, weed seeds and insects that threaten high-value crops. WAPITI 98® is approved for application to soil in protected agriculture, with tomatoes as the first crop on the label. Turkey is the third country to register Iodomethane for commercial use, following the U.S. and Japan. 

The active ingredient in WAPITI 98®, Iodomethane, was developed as a drop-in replacement for methyl bromide, a fumigant being phased out of use internationally. Iodomethane is commercially registered as MIDAS® in the U.S. and YOKAFUME® in Japan.

WAPITI 98® will be available in Turkey through CANSA, a national distributor that has invested in dedicated formulation and packaging and infrastructure for contract application. CANSA collaborated strongly with Arysta LifeScience Europe and was a major contributor to achieving registration. CANSA joins Arysta LifeScience Europe in the implementation of a local training and stewardship program that is specific to the use of WAPITI 98®. In addition, Arysta LifeScience Europe has developed a method for drip application of WAPITI 98 using patented Symmetry™ technology.

Iodomethane has undergone rigorous reviews by regulatory authorities to establish protective measures for its use as a next generation soil fumigant. In the U.S., Iodomethane is an effective methyl bromide alternative for more than 28 different agricultural commodities. It has been applied to more than 15,500 acres in the Southeast in the past two and a half years. Growers who apply Iodomethane have experienced results comparable to methyl bromide.

Registration for iodomethane is pending internationally in Australia, New Zealand, Morocco, Israel, Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Chile and is in development in many other countries.