2020 FAT: Highlights the advanced technologies and market dynamics and explores challenges and opportunities

From 17-18, December 2020, the 2nd Ag Formulation & Application Technology Congress  (FAT2020), hosted by AgroPages, was held successfully in Hangzhou, China. With the theme of Industry Upgrade and Global Service, FAT2020 invited experts and scholars at home and abroad to have extensive exchanges on the latest regulatory trend, latest market change and the latest cutting-edge technology as well as the application practices in the field of agrochemical formulations, in a purpose to jointly promote a clustered development of the agrochemical formulation industry.

Zhang Wei, from ICAMA of the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, gave a briefing of the policy changes with respect to pesticide administration, having made an analysis on the pesticide registration trending. Since the publication and implementation of the Regulations on Pesticide Administration in 2017, the Chinese pesticide administration system has been much improved and upgraded to a higher level, laying stress on optimization of management service, improvement of efficiency of pesticide examination and approval procedure. Meanwhile, administrative approval reform measures have been taken to  ″reduce  submission of documentation, reduce formalities, reduce days of approval and optimize the approval procedure.″

Over recent years, the strict work safety and environmental compliance requirements have led to considerable amount of mergers and industry chain re-deployment within agrochemical enterprises. The number of enterprises  has decreases year by year; the scale of manufacturers continues to expand; the geographical location of enterprises is changing due to the pressure of environmental compliance regulation; large-scale enterprises have become more active  about going public; the development momentum of international pesticide companies is unstoppable; the price rise in raw materials and technicals might accelerate consolidation of the upstream and downstream pesticide industries. Going forward, Chinese pesticide companies may opt for more mergers and acquisitions to get united against competitions.

The pesticide registrations in 2020 was characterized as the following: 1) Novel biopesticide registrations increased significantly as a result of the much-improved R&D capacity of Chinese enterprises; 2) Sub-novel product varieties, novel formulations and novel formulas became the new focus of research and development; product homogeneity decreased significantly; product was more diversified; product functionality was enhanced and individualized (granules and seed treatment agents growing rapidly to adapt to the needs of intensified application and labor-saving applications; sanitary pesticides and plant inducers performed well; upgraded formulations such as SC, SF and OD grew rapidly); 3) Seed treatment and soil treatment products were in favor; 4) biopesticides such as plant hormone, attractant, plant inducer, microbial pesticide and plant-derived pesticides became hot varieties of research and development. In particular, agricultural antibiotic products decreased significantly while brassica plant hormones and oligosaccharide plant inducers were chased after. In addition, market release of insect pheromones was accelerated.

Moreover, Zhang Wei drew attentions to the issues related to pesticide registration: 1) In respect of production permit, except for new pesticides, pesticide registration shall not be granted to enterprises without production permit; for enterprises that have been granted pesticide registration but have not been granted production permit, registration of new products, changes in registration, change of corporate name and renewal of registration shall not be granted; AS and FS formulations in relation to production need to be attended; 2) Data assignment, data authorization and change of registration certificate owner need to be attended; 3) The issue of same product and similar product needs to be attended; 4) The issue of ″three principles″ related to content and proportion needs to be attended.

Lastly, Zhang Wei shared views on the agrochemical industry under the new situation: The trend of pesticide use reduction and efficiency increase is the future trend of development; the COVID-19 has changed the socio-economic development model; pesticides are no longer the best choice while alternative technologies would be highly valued; China’s ″national and international dual circulation″ model is expected to facilitate export of pesticides.

Zhang Wei, ICAMA of the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

Registration regulation in Europe was becoming more and more stringent; cost of registration in China was increasing; patentors were becoming more aggressive and more protective; potential molecules were decreasing gradually with increased competition. Coupled with the multiple factors such as the COVID-19, trade barrier and the post-Trump impact, what would be the products preferred by agrochemical companies for development and registration? In response to these questions, Ji Feiyu, senior global business and strategic supply manager of Rotam, through detailed case study, proposed tactics like this: not to follow confusing market conduct of patentors; get back to have a better understanding of agronomy and end-users; seize the first opportunity such as China’s export-only registration to make an earlier market deployment; open up business in the territory where crops are not yet covered by registration of patented products; compounding of newly off-patent products. Because of the direct or indirect impacts from regulations, market, risk, registration costs and returns, companies need to be more cautious about selection of product for development and for registration. To take an action in joint registration is one of the ways to cope with changes. Also, as a formulator, earlier participation in global registration together with technicals manufacturers would be wise; pay attention crop platforms; make preemptive deployment in the emerging biopesticide and biostimulant market to join the biotechnical industry development.

Ji Feiyu, senior global business and strategic supply manager of Rotam

Dr David Calvert, Director and Co-founder at iFormulate Limited, UK (formulation and technical consultancy, customized research and development), gave an introduction to the design principles of formulation of agrochemicals, and the regional differences.

David holds the view that formulation design needs to meet 3 major criteria: Commercial value with market demand; robust manufacturing; regulatory and quality compliance. The design of formulation encompasses trial and error, empirical rules of thumb, statistical design of experiments, full predictive models for formulation. Process flow includes the steps such as getting started, laboratory work, pilot scale, manufacture, exploiting knowledge. The step of getting started involves customer promise, business brief, technical brief, quality attributes, material properties, process parameters, process control, prior knowledge and risk assessment.

Formulation design for different regions require consideration of the environment, pests and diseases of the regions, application technology and customer needs, based on which  formulation is designed and product is customized. At the same time, it is necessary to prepare the business brief (different prices and competitors) and the technical brief (target market, regulatory regime, process variability, temperature, humidity, sunlight, rain fastness, shelf life, stability, storage, cost, restriction on active ingredient, method of application, promotion and publicity).

Dr David Calvert, Director and Co-founder at iFormulate Limited, UK

Bernhard Grimmig, Head of Formulation Technology, Bayer CropScience, has long years of exploration and practical experiences in the field of formulation. At this meeting, Bernhard focused on the key factors affecting the bioavailability of agrochemicals as well as how to optimize / reduce the use of crop protection chemicals through formulation design and Bayer’s pesticide delivery technology. Bayer CropScience always adheres to innovative development and constant exploration of new ideas, new methods, new technologies and new solutions.

Bernhard believes that considerations for designing high-quality formulations include: the PhysChem property of active(s), the mode of action (systemic vs. contact), product concept (A.I. loading, handling, application, carrier volume).High-quality formulations must ensure maximized performance of active ingredients, with easy to handle, good solubility, good mixability, good compatibility, long shelf life and are safely produced; quality formulations protect the environment, with lower use rates, lower drift, lower volatility, no residues in soil and water, safe to apply and can meet all relevant regulatory requirements.

The approaches to optimization or reduction of the use and safety of plant protection products through formulation design include: 1) Improvement of the bioavailability of active ingredients, such as the delivery of active ingredients to the target (bioavailability), reduction of off-target movements (drift, volatility and wash-off) and controlled/sustained release of actives, all of which depend on how active ingredients are transferred from sprayer nozzle to the target; 2) Spraying only where required (patch spraying), spraying only as little as required (optimal dosing pest / weed-specific). These applications require improved spraying using sensors,  precision spraying systems and spraying maps.

In summary, the use of chemical pesticides can be reduced by optimizing the design of formulations; pesticides need to be safe for humans and the environment; advanced application technology and digital agriculture will change the traditional way of farming; understanding of factors determining bioavailability of synthetic and biological crop protection agents is key to optimize delivery and efficacy of pesticides; formulations can be designed in manifold ways to optimize the use of pesticides and reduce environmental and health impacts. Bayer engages in various collaborations and open innovation approaches to bring in new ideas and explore new technologies in all areas.

Bernhard Grimmig, Head of Formulation Technology, Bayer CropScience

Schrikant Aherkar, Lead Scientist, Stepan Agricultural Solutions – Asia Pacific stressed on the  difficulties in development of OD formulations as well as Stepan’s series solutions and application practices. OD formulations are a fast-growing type of pesticide formulation in recent years, which is environment friendly, with a high efficacy. However, the existing OD formulations have in general got problems such as segregation, precipitation, excessive viscosity, easy agglomeration and poor stability in case of long-time storage, which seriously hinder the sound development of OD formulations.

To tackle the above problems, Stepan has launched a series of anionic and nonionic dispersants and solvents, represented by the multi-functional  STEPFAC™ 8181 PT3K, the high-efficient STEPGROW™ RM 1001 rheology modifier, the versatile emulsifier STEPGROW AB 1005 and the oil suspension solvents such as the methyl oleate STEPOSOL^® OE, soybean oil methyl STEPOSOL^® ME, the coconut oil methyl STEPAN^® C-65 and  C-42, and the triglyceride STEPAN 108.

Stepan is committed to providing environment-friendly and innovative solutions to customers worldwide. For the Asian market, Stepan provides customers with unique solutions, including glufosinate and pinoxaden synergistic adjuvants, tank-mix adjuvants, characteristic dispersants, complete OD formulation solutions, green solvents and clethodim emulsifiers.

Schrikant Aherkar Shrikant Aherkar, Lead Scientist, Stepan Agricultural Solutions – Asia Pacific

Chou Jingyu, R&D Director at Shengyang Sinochem Agrochemicals R&D Co., Ltd., presented an analysis on the difficulties in development, processing and applications of multi-element compounded formulations. Creation of novel pesticides takes long, at high cost, which makes development very difficult. So, the research of compounded formulations has become an effective means to extend the service life of pesticides and reduce the cost of control. However, it is difficult to develop compounded formulations. For a high-content mixture, development of formulation is indeed difficult. In the process of research of formulation, some problems may occur, such as the high viscosity, low suspensibility, water segregation, crystallization, creaming, oil segregation,  demulsification, particle size increase and a biological activity which is not expected. For low-content mixtures, it is likely to incur increase of cost of packaging, reduction of production efficiency and increase of risk of phytotoxicity. To this end, multi-element formulation needs to be sure that the active ingredients are stable and will not increase environmental and biological toxicity; will not produce cross-resistance and antagonistic effect. The future trend of multi-element formulation will be: synergistic, complementary, resistance-prolonging, spectrum-extended and product-differentiated.  

Chou Jingyu, R&D Director at Shengyang Sinochem Agrochemicals R&D Co., Ltd.

Emma Chen, technical service manager at Incotec, presented Incotec’s seven seed value-added technologies - seed priming, seed encrusting & pelleting, application of actives, additives & biologicals, seed upgrading, seed film coating, seed hygiene and seed analysis. Emma elaborated on the technical details of a visualized seed selection process, seed priming and seed coating cases (film coating, seed coverage, small pellet and standard pellet), focusing on the film coating techniques which cover seed film coating, influencing factors, seed dust control, seed movement control, standards for wear reduction and high-end appearance of seeds.

Lastly, Emma shared thoughts about the future seed treatment development trend and Incotec’s idea and practice in the sustainable development of seed treatment. The future seed development trend is reflected in two dimensions: 1) seeds will definitely carry more and more functions, for which the idea of Incotec is to improve the quality of seeds to ensure germination, safety, health and the uptake of more nutrients in the entire growth process; 2) all products should be sustainable, it is recommended that seed companies enclose agrochemicals or more functional products directly on the surface of seeds, instead of field application. Moreover, going forward Incotec may consider removal of microplastics from all products.

Emma Chen, technical service manager at Incotec

Dr. James Qin, CTO and founder of SINVOCHEM, delivered a report entitled ″Research and practice on relationship between tank-mix adjuvant and efficiency of delivery of pesticides.″ Dr. Qin is of the opinion that only products that meet the needs of application scenarios can be regarded as high-quality products, saying that the digitalized droplet delivery can improve the accuracy of research of efficacy. On this basis, SINVOCHEM has established an application scenario-oriented data collection, data analysis and data application capability platform for digitalization of the interfacial behavior of droplet delivery. The platform studies the structure function relationship between adjuvants and the behavior of delivery of agents, which can effectively improve the controllability of delivery of droplets and improve the use rate of pesticides.

The life cycle of transport process of pesticide molecules includes dispersion and emulsification of pesticide molecules, delivery of the liquid from the spray nozzle to the surface of targets as well as the transport of the pesticide molecules inside the target. Different types of tank-mix adjuvants play different roles in the process so as to regulate dispersion, drifting, evaporation, spreading and deposition of pesticide droplets in the process as well as the in vivo transport, by which the use rate of pesticides is increased.

The dispersant SP-3275 launched by the company is an amphipathic high molecular material containing weak cationic group. The product has a strong capability of control of particle size, it inhibits the recrystallization of technicals which are prone to crystallization, especially at low melting point. The product is resistant to hard water and has a good dispersion and suspension capacity in high calcium and magnesium water; the product has a good dispersion and suspension capacity in high-salinity environment, which is fit to simultaneous use of fertilizers; the product improves the absorbability on the surface of the leaf and increases the amount of deposition. Beirunte^®SP-4026 has an excellent wetting and penetration effect as well as an ultra-efficient foliar spreading capability which improves foliar coverage and reduces the surface tension of the agent. The SP-4806 can satisfactorily regulate the systemicity.

Lastly, Dr. Qin shared with participants several dimensions of development of tank-mix adjuvants including: safety of adjuvants (nonoxynol, part of cations, environmental restriction on use...); polymer polycarboxylates which regulate the stability of pesticide-fertilizer integration; reversed-phase polymerization which regulates anti-drift in drone applications; vegetable oil-based polyhydroxy or amino polymers which regulate anti-evaporation property; multifunctional organosilicon polyether which regulates spreading, rain fastness and increases deposition; cyclodextrin and chitin which enhance dissolution; succinates, citrates and organic amines which improve absorption and delivery.

Dr. James Qin, CTO and founder of SINVOCHEM

Liu Runfeng, chief of research center at Pilarquim, discussed the production process and application technology of pesticide microcapsules. First of all, Liu Runfeng made a summary of the methods of formulation of microcapsules: In-situ polymerization, interfacial polymerization, emulsion polymerization, solvent volatilization and spray drying. Secondly, Liu Runfeng elaborated on the production process of the in-situ polymerization method and the interfacial polymerization method. The process of microencapsulation is more critical than formulation. After experimentation, microcapsules must undergo lab trials and scaleup runs prior to start of mass production. The lab trials and scaleup runs focus on product’s elapsing stability, physiochemical indicators and bioassay efficacy; a pilot production covering configuration, process feasibility, control of process parameters needs to be conducted to identify problems as much as possible to get through to mass production. Lastly, Liu Runfeng shared the practical applications of the pesticide microcapsule suspension technology to herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and seed treatment agents.

The lasting period, reduction of use amount and increase of efficiency of microcapsules have been proven by a large number of field data, revealing a reduction of use amount by at least 10%-20%. However, there is currently still little research on efficacy of microcapsules while most of the efforts are made to achieve physiochemical property. Efforts are required to study, step by step, the differences in efficacy between different preparation methods, preparation processes and different wall materials as well as the laboratory characterization method; efforts need be made to enrich the ways of application (spray, seed dressing, flush; cropland pests, sanitary pests, soil pests); efforts also need to be made to establish an inherent link between the laboratory characterization data and efficacy, which, in retune, will guide the product preparation method, preparation process and selection of wall materials for microcapsules.

Liu Runfeng, chief of research center at Pilarquim

Professor Qian Hong of Shanghai Pesticide Research Institute used detailed data to analyze the progress of research and development of non-plastic pesticide microencapsulation. Pesticide microencapsulation is one of the fastest-growing formulations in recent years, microcapsules represented by CS are one of the best types of formulations among the existing pesticide formulations. However, in the past 10 years, with the rapid development of micro-capsulation products, the increased regulatory requirement on safety and environmental regulatory compliance, problems in development and production of microcapsules have become more obvious. So far as the Chinese microencapsulation development is concerned, the major issues are related to the following: 1) Inefficient and ineffective release of some of the products, which need to be improved; 2) The formaldehyde residue in some products, which needs to be removed; 3) New technologies are required to develop ″low plastic″ and ″non plastic″ microcapsules, for which microencapsulation technology needs to be constantly improved and upgraded. Attentions need to be paid to 1) Development of the ″low plastic″ microcapsule technology, such as thin shell technology and plastic-non plastic combination technology; 2) Probe into new fields and acceleration of research and development of non-plastic encapsulation of pesticide microcapsules.

The progressing of EU’s Plastic Bag Ban is expected to speed up non plastic encapsulation-oriented technical advancement. Non plastic encapsulation will become an important orientation which will guide development of pesticide microcapsules. Since the 1990s, the global pesticide industry, R&D institutions and universities around the world have begun development of pesticide microencapsulation based on non plastic microcapsules. So far, a large variety of technical achievements have been made including a number of novel capsule wall  materials and formulation processes which allow for degradation of materials in natural forms. The major achievements are 1) Silica-based materials; 2) Chemically modified biological materials; 3) Microbial cell wall. Furthermore, a lot of new materials, new technologies (such as β-cd chitin and alginate) are under development. The development of microencapsulation based on silica-based materials, biomaterials and yeast cells has advanced to a high level, which, is however yet to be industrialized and is applied currently only to a small number of pesticide microcapsules. A lot of technical obstacles  are still required to be overcome if non plastic microcapsules are expected to be changed from slow release to controlled release. It is expected that promotion of non plastic encapsulation will be a process from gradual development toward accelerated development, which provides formulators with  opportunities of early entry into the industry sector.

On January 16, 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment jointly issued a document – Instructions to Further Strengthen Control of Plastic Pollution. The document  proposes three stages of control of plastics following the idea of ″a number of bans, a number of substitutions, a number of standardizations,″ which would be implemented in three stages, respectively in 2020, 2022 and 2025, having clearly defined the tasks and goals of control of plastic pollution. In light of the trending of plastic ban, pesticide formulation enterprises ought to consider the future trend and look far to improve the existing microencapsulation technology via research and development of non plastic encapsulation technology.

Professor Qian Hong of Shanghai Pesticide Research Institute

DF formulation is a novel pesticide formulation developed on the basis of suspensions, which has the features of high efficiency, environment friendliness and high safety. DF is fit for drone applications, it solves the problems of chemical stability of some of the products and the stability of elapsing of some WDG products, which falls in line with the future development trend of agricultural chemical formulations. Moreover, It is one of the effective approaches to achieving the pesticide use reduction and efficiency increase initiative. However, development of DF formulation is difficult, with high energy consumption and higher cost on equipment. Chen Fuyong, general manager of Jiangsu Zeta, shared with participants the four pelletizing processes of DF formulation (extrusion pelletizing, centrifugal spray, pressure spray and fluidized pelletizing) as well as the equipment and product strength of the company.

Chen Fuyong, CEO at Zeta Biochem

Song Chunyan, R&D manager at Zhejiang Runhe Material, presented the principle and the synergistic effect of organosilicon, elaborating on the excellent synergistic performance of organosilicon adjuvants. The series of organosilicon adjuvants launched by Runhe have an excellent spreadability, permeability, systemicity, conductivity and rain fastness, being 20 times of the activity of conventional adjuvants, which could save about 20-30% use of product and  50% use of water.

Song Chunyan, R&D manager at Zhejiang Runhe Material

Chinese pesticide formulation is mostly of discrete production, covering diverse formulations, active ingredients and product specifications, with low production efficiency, higher production cost and high risk of cross-contamination. Enterprises would expect: safety and environment friendliness so as to meet national requirements; product quality to conform to market demand; minimization of risk of cross-contamination of formulations; competitive cost advantage and sustainable development. To address the above issues, Qi Wu, general manager of Nanjing Zhongnong, discussed the key points in relation to operations of the formulation factories. The design of a factory is quite clear: high profitability, rapid response, automated running, defect-free, high flexibility, zero inventory, controllable cross-contamination. In the factory design process, the concept of lean production should be introduced, based on which the design is made. The principles of unity, shortest distance and smooth logistics need to be observed. At the beginning of design, consideration needs to be given to cross-pollution control and risk management.

The workshop layout needs be done in a way that can exhibit the business strength of the enterprise while facilitating pragmatic production activities, with refection of a full lean production facility; production automation and flexibility need to be both taken into account, with simple process being easy to operate; attention needs to be paid to the rationality of work safety and pollution control; the difficulty in cleaning equipment due to cross-contamination needs to be eased.

The master plan of the factory needs to be: production of insecticide and herbicide separated; insecticide and fungicide workshops classified by types of formulations;  herbicide classified first by crop application and then by type of formulations; formulation processing matching sub packaging of pesticide formulations; production matching storage of formulations; logistically simplified to reduce logistical and people crossover; Lastly, work safety and environmental regulation fully considered and the associated cost cut down.

Qi Wu, CEO at Nanjing Zhongnong

Su Yue, overseas marketing director, Shandong Kesai Agrochemical, shared with participants the long-year practical experience in agricultural pain-point identification and development of solutions. In Su Yue’s view, the pain points for  agricultural product include diseases, insects, weeds and rats which occur and are difficult to control in the whole growth period of crops; the inefficient agricultural production procedure, time and labor-consuming process; and any factors that affect agricultural production. To this end, through market research at the right time and right place, combined with its own advantages, based on its good command of the application technology of the products, Kosai Agrochem has launched relevant products or solutions, accompanied with provision of satisfactory follow-up services.

Su Yue, overseas marketing director, Shandong Kesai Agrochemical

Jose Edson, Industrial Production Director of Ourofino, a leading agrochemical company in Brazil, presented the qualifications of its formulation plant, production capacity, equipment utilization rate, production, warehousing, technical center and registration process. Jose Edson holds the view that most of the global crop protection solutions of multinationals are developed in research and development centers in the northern hemisphere, where climate and soil conditions are quite different in Brazil. Brazil has a strong sunlight, high temperature and high humidity, with serious incidence of diseases and insect pests. In response to the conditions in Brazil, Ourofino has collaborated with renowned research institutes to develop agrochemicals fit to tropical agriculture. Ourofino owns one of the most modern crop protection plants in the world, which is located in the Uberaba Industrial Zone, with high level of production safety. The plant is accredited to the highest international environment, health and safety standards, with a  capacity of more than 120 million liters, which is a fully automated facility. By virtue of an advanced laboratory, the plant is able to develop innovative formulations for better performance to contribute to realization of the strategic objective of Reshaping Brazilian Agriculture.

Jose Edson, Industrial Production Director of Ourofino

Oneil Samuels, Plant Manager of AGCHEM plant, a subsidiary of the Caribbean agrochemical distributor CCA, gave a briefing of its formulation plant and the challenges faced by pesticide formulation in the region. Located in Jamaica, AGCHEM is the only formulation plant in the English-speaking Caribbean region, being engaged mainly in blending and formulation of soluble liquids, emulsifiable concentrates and powder (DP). Herbicide, which is of the highest output, accounts for approximately 65% of formulations; paraquat at approximately 36%; glyphosate at 27%; various concentrations of amine totaled to 19% and insecticides totaled to approximately 10%.

In addition, Oneil samuels pointed out that formulation in the Caribbean region faces a series of challenges. As an island country, it is difficult to obtain economy of scale due to limited production volume and unit cost, which is higher than Asian competitors, whilst payback of investment on new technologies and equipment is long. So, investment is not attractive. Moreover, regional farmers are resistant to change. They are not eager to switch to newer molecules unless there is regulatory intervention. This means manufacturers have to organize promotions and exhibitions to convince farmers for conversion, which will increase operating cost and compresses profit margins. A regulatory roadblock exists, as import permits are required for all samples needed for laboratory work, the regulator also limits the number of permits granted for samples and this restricts the number of products that can be developed simultaneously. Any change or addition to an existing registered formulation requires a new registration, which means that manufacturers have to make promotion and spend money once again. On the other side, there is an increased competition from lower priced imported finished pesticides. Over the last two years, the Chinese formulations have accessed to this region. In some cases, supplier of the finished product is often the same supplier of the raw materials and therefore controls the pricing mechanism. This  threatens the overall long-term viability of regional formulations.

Oneil Samuels, Plant Manager of AGCHEM plant

Dr. Mohammad Shafique, General Manager of Suncrop Group, a leading crop protection company in Pakistan, presented Pakistan’s agricultural profile, crop structure and pesticide applications as well as agrochemical import volume, supported by detailed data.

The pesticide market in Pakistan has been growing year by year, especially herbicides and fungicides. There is an increased demand for novel herbicides intended for wide application to  wheat  and rice; the application of fungicides to wheat, rice and vegetables is also in high demand; and opportunity of seed treatment solutions does exist. Among the market structure, insecticides account for 66%, herbicides account for 20% and fungicides account for 11%. Insecticide value in Pakistan market is highest. More than 50 % of the consumption of insecticides is still in sucking pest on cotton; the trend of insecticide on cotton, like pyriproxyfen, chlorfenapyr, acetamiprid etc is reducing. Herbicides and fungicides are more profitable.

To-date the value of A.I. Cartap was highest with a good margin on import list of current year, followed by diafenthiuron, monomehypo and emamectin. Almost all top 10 are single molecules except CTPR+ thiamethoxam which is on 10th rank. The maize herbicides mesotrione, atrazine, smetolachlor and pinoxaden were highest in value. Import volume of mesotrione and atrazine was high, being both single agents and mixtures. Up to date, single agents are imported in large volume for the purpose of mixing locally. Import of fungicides improved further, being 66% in 2020 over the previous year. Only difenoconazole crossed $5 million. Other leading ones are azoxystrobin, tebuconazole+ trifloxystrobin and thiophanate. Import of sulphur was very high in 2019, which has been reduced to about 47% in 2019. Syngenta and Suncrop ranked the first two places, followed by FMC.

In addition, Mohammad Shafique presented the SWOT analysis of the crop protection market and the three kinds of registrations in Pakistan.

Dr. Mohammad Shafique, General Manager of Suncrop Group

If you are interested in delivering a speech over the formulation, adjuvant and application technologies and market dynamics etc. at the 2022 FAT, please contact: grace@agropages.com/agropages@vip.163.com.