CropLife Brasil rules out issues to importing pesticides from China

Despite the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the pesticide sector is confident that there will be no problems in importing products from China.

CropLife Brasil, an association that represents part of the pesticide sector, stated that it is monitoring the situation on a daily basis, but noted that, so far, the effects have not been felt by local production.

“Although the market in Brazil is well-stocked, it may be that there is a lack of specific products, but there is no sign of a general lack of products or seeds,” said Christian Lohbauer (Executive President of CropLife Brasil).

Syngenta, a multinational controlled by ChemChina, also guarantees that there are no interruptions to the supply chain, stressing that it is working to make sure everything runs as usual. Both companies highlighted a return to normal work in their offices in China.

Biologicals at risk

According to CropLife Brasil, biologicals do not normally depend on imported raw materials, and, as a result, will not be impacted by possible future restrictions to international logistics or by the rise in the dollar.

But the same does not apply to imported biologicals, which will be directly impacted. Final biologicals can be 5-7% more expensive, according to the association, while imported raw material used in production can undergo an immediate readjustment of 15% to 20% in terms of price. There is also a risk of a lack of supplies.

Instability

In addition, CropLife pointed out that storing biological pesticides for over 60 days is not usual due to their shelf life.

European countries and the United States, which are suppliers of raw materials and final biologicals, have asked for the availability of products to be assessed daily, since there is no longer production stability due to government restrictions.

The original Portuguese version of this article is from Globo Rural.