First generic Clorfenapir launched in Brazilian market

By Leonardo Gottems, Reporter for AgroPages

Brazilian crop protection company Cropchem recently announced the launch of the country's first generic insecticide based on the active ingredient, Clorfenapir. 

Known as “Trigger 240 SC,” the pesticide is also an acaricide and has a shock and residual control action, as well as a translaminar effect that even affects caterpillars on the underside of leaves.

“Due to its exclusive mode of action, the product is a great option for handling resistance, in rotation with products from other chemical groups and with different mechanisms of action. As it is a recent molecule and still less used in the country, there are also no records of resistance to Clorfenapir, unlike other active ingredients that are very widespread in the management of difficult to control caterpillars,” Cropchem said.

Caterpillars, such as Helicoverpa armigera, Pseudoplusia includens and Spodoptera frugiperda, usually cause serious productivity damage to Brazilian soybean and other crops. Within their variations and specificities, in general, they are difficult to control pests that attack different plant structures, such as leaves, flowers, pods and grains.

“Clorfenapir effectively controls all caterpillars, such as Helicoverpa, P. includens, Spodopteras, among others. Pest management strategies depend on several factors, but I would say that this is a card up its sleeve. It is an insecticide that performs well even in very high infestations,” explained entomologist Lucia Vivan, who is responsible for product testing at Fundação MT in Mato Grosso.

Trigger 240 SC is intended for use during various stages of cultivation and pest development, but its application is recommended during the incidence of the first caterpillars with more than 1.5 cm per m². A broad-spectrum product, it is approved for 18 crops, including soybeans, corn, cotton, citrus and beans, with additional proven efficiency in controlling mites and thrips.

Studies on the product were also carried out at Cooperativa Cotripal in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, as well as at the Agrarian Foundation for Agricultural Research (FAPA) and the ABC Foundation, both in the state of Paraná.

Trigger 240 SC is the 28th product in the portfolio of Cropchem, a company that is 100% Brazilian and, with only 20 years of experience in the market, is already the fifth largest national agrochemical. The company also just launched Bitrin 100 EC (Bifenthrin) for the control of suckers, and recently obtained an unprecedented registration of Nicosulfuron for the pre-sowing of soybeans, through the product, Kyron 750 WG. By the end of this year, the insecticide, Mosaico EC (Lufenuron + Profenofós), should also be launched, offering another option for managing caterpillars in soy.