Brazil Registration Watch: MAPA registers 2 new agrochemicals, ametoctradin and isofetamid

According to a publication in the Official Gazette on 19th August, the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA) approved, for industrial use, another 48 pesticides, which could be used as raw materials in preparing pesticides for farmers.

Two are new fungicides, ametoctradin and isofetamid, while 46 are generic pesticides.

In total, the government has authorized 358 crop protection products this year, with 138 being active ingredients that could be used in manufacturing pesticides, while 220 are formulated products that can be used directly by farmers.

Ametoctradin is used to combat late blight and downy mildew, a disease that causes leaf mold on plants and can even lead to premature shedding. According to Ibama, ametoctradin is considered a "Dangerous Product to the Environment," and it has no Anvisa toxicological classification.

Isofetamid is used to control white mold and gray mold and is considered a "Very Dangerous Product to the Environment." It is also not classified by Anvisa.

Both are authorized in the US and the EU.

In the US, ametoctradin is classified as “not likely to be carcinogenic to humans,” while isofetamid, despite not showing any risk to plants, is considered as having a "potential chronic risk to birds."

Among the generic products approved by MAPA, seven stand out for being based on dicamba, which is a hormonal herbicide that accelerates the maturation of crops and is much debated for having a greater propensity to volatilize and evaporate, which, together with strong winds, could lead to its spread to neighboring plantations. For this reason, the pesticide can cause the premature aging of leaves in other plantations.

The Brazilian Association of Soybean Producers (Aprosoja Brasil) expressed concern about the resistance of soybean seeds to the herbicide, dicamba. For the organization, the Ministry of Agriculture should "more strongly regulate dicamba" before releasing GM soybean.

Records in 2021

Currently, there are 14 new active ingredients approved this year, 5 of which are biological products and 9 are chemical pesticides, while the other 344 registrations are generics, which are as follows:

• 160 chemical pesticides could be sold to farmers;
  

• 51 biological pesticides could be sold to farmers;

• 133 active ingredients for the industry to formulate pesticides.

New products approved in 2021

• Neoseiulus barkeri (farmers' use): first product in Brazil registered to control the red palm mite, one of the main pests of coconut trees. It can also be recommended for white mite control.
  

• Neochrysocharis formosa (farmers use): controls the leaf miner (Liriomyza sativae);
  

• Neoseiulus idaeus (farmers use): recommended for the control of spotted spider mite (Tetranynchus urticae);
  

• Goemon (farmers use): made from the new active ingredient cyclaniliprole, registered to control the caterpillar of Helicoverpa armigera in cotton, corn and soybean crops;
  

• Kenja (farmers' use): made from isofetamid, a fungicide to control white mold (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) in soybean, bean, potato, tomato and lettuce crops.
  

• Cyclaniliprole (industry use): insecticide used to manufacture products that fight caterpillars in cotton, corn and soybean crops.
  

• Oxathiapiprolin (industry use): fungicide used on crops such as potatoes, garlic, onions, tomatoes, lettuce;
  

• Kamuy (farmers use): based on fenpyrazamine, mixed with another active ingredient. The pesticide is used to control white mold, a fungicidal disease that attacks several agricultural crops
  

• Halauxifen-methyl (industry use): herbicide indicated for weeds that are difficult to control;
  

• Adengo (Thiencarbazone + Isoxaflutol, farmers' use): allows the control of weeds, both narrow-leaf and broad-leaf, in maize crops;
  

• Rudder (farmers use): made from Bacillus velezensis, which is used to control fusariosis, a disease caused by a fungus called “Fusarium solani”. This disease causes plant root rot and can affect different crops;
  

• Bionema (use by farmers): it is also made from Bacillus velezensis, with the same purpose as Rudder.