AgBiTech's Fawligen registered in Bangladesh

Ispahani and AgBiTech recently announced the formal registration of a biological control for Fall Armyworm in Bangladesh.

The product is called Fawligen and belongs to the new IRAC mode of action Group 31 (host-specific occluded pathogenic viruses). It contains a nucleopolyhedrovirus specific to the Fall Armyworm (FAW) pest and underwent multiple regulatory trials and assessments in Bangladesh in 2019 and the early part of 2020. Fawligen is manufactured by the global leader and innovator in biological pest control, AgBiTech Pty Ltd.

This rapid assessment and registration despite the ongoing lockdown due to Covid-19 is the result of months of collaborative hard work and support from members representing multiple organizations namely, USAID, CIMMYT, the Ministry of Agriculture, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute, Plant Protection Wing of the Department of Agricultural Extension, and the Fall Armyworm National Task Force.

According to Dr. Tim Krupnik, Country Representative for Research and Partnerships, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) Bangladesh, “the achievement of registering Fawligen in Bangladesh marks an important point in empowering farmers to manage pests like Fall Armyworm with safe, bio-rational, and integrated pest management solutions. Having a commercially available biological pesticide like Fawligen will reduce the need for farmers to resort to more dangerous and ineffective synthetic insecticides that can have significant negative human and environmental health consequences. CIMMYT was proud to have assisted in facilitating the registration process through the USAID and Michigan State University supported Fighting Back Against Fall Armyworm project. We hope to move more appropriate and science-based integrated pest management solutions – including biocontrol from natural enemies – from the lab and research fields into farmers’ hands - not only for Fall Armyworm, but for other key pests.”

Ms. Fawzia Yesmeen, Director of Ispahani Agro Limited (IAL), the leading and pioneering bio-pesticide marketing company in Bangladesh, said, “one of the remarkable achievements of IAL is to get the registration of an effective biological pesticide like Fawligen, against Fall Armyworm, a devastating invasive pest of maize, within a very short period of time. IAL will make this product available to the farmers quickly and in that way, it will proceed one step further to fulfil the aim of the Government of Bangladesh to ensure “Safe food production” by promoting bio-rational pest management inputs throughout the country. I thank all government agencies, international organizations especially USAID and CIMMYT for facilitating the quick registration process.”

Dr. Shachi Gurumayum, Head of South Asia for AgBiTech said, "this joint achievement is great for farmers in Bangladesh who will now be able to use a safe and proven product to control FAW, a pest that has been threatening maize production in Bangladesh ever since it first arrived in late 2018. This registration follows the registration in Sri Lanka and demonstrates AgBiTech’s continuous commitment to enable farmers around the world access top-class biological controls for lepidopteran pests".