Bond between Soybean and Biological Products, Nematicides Grows in Brazil

By André Dias

Agronomist with experience in large companies, André Dias is a founding partner and chief executive of Spark Strategic Intelligence. He is also a board member in both private and non profit organizations.

After six harvests of activities, Spark – Smarter Decisions has the most complete collection of comprehensive data about agrochemicals, seeds and fertilizers markets in Brazil, with our study BIP- Business Intelligence Panel becoming the main monitor for the industry and distribution channels alike.

Recently, BIP showed a strong upward trend in the use of biological pesticides by Brazilian producers, especially in the cultivation of sugar cane, corn, cotton and soy. In the latter, the main item of Brazilian agricultural exports, Sparks BIP detected that biologicals have been widely used in seed treatment. 

Relevant data, which draws attention to the market potential for these products, was the treatment of more than 2.5 million hectares of soybeans with bionematicides, observed in the 2018-19 harvest. The total market for biological pesticides in soybean reached US $ 100 million, 45% above the 2017-18 harvest. With plant nutrition products (Inoculants) accounted for, the organic market moved US$ 150 million into soybeans in the 2018-19 harvest. 

A preview of BIP Spark 2019-20, to be released soon, anticipates another strong growth of biologicals and, specifically, of nematicides. Nematode, a pest that affects mainly the Brazilian Cerrado, attacks the soybean root. The concern of producers with the pest increased the adoption of nematicides from 2% of the treated area, in the 2016-17 harvest, to 9% in 2018-19. In the State of Mato Grosso, for example, nematicides were applied to 16% of the cultivated area in the 2018-2019 period, against 7% in the 2016-17 cycle. 

Sparks BIP found that the growth in the use of nematicides was due to the increase in the number of suppliers and products as a result of investments by companies in research and development of new technologies, and from the granting of registrations to new products by regulatory bodies. 

In addition to bionematicides, Spark measured that biofungicides also registered significant leaps in adherence by Brazilian producers. This category was the second most used in the biological segment for the soybean crop in the 2018-19 harvest, reaching close to US$ 40 million. The adoption of these products grew from 1% (2016-17) to 7% (2018-19). 

Another highlight of Spark's study on bio-inputs for soybeans is the growth of the so-called inoculation. It is an agronomic practice that aims at plant nutrition through the application of products described as “biological inoculants”. Adherence to ‘coinoculation’ was recorded in 15% of soybean crops in the 2018-19 cycle. Inoculants, according to experts, help in better biological nitrogen fixation as a nutrient.

This article was initially published in AgroPages '2020 Latin America Focus' magazine. Download it to read more articles.