Bayer present at Expodireto Cotrijal with adapted seeds, unique fungicide

The 23rd Expodireto Cotrijal took place from March 6 to 10 in the municipality of Não-Me-Toque (RS). Bayer has a pavilion at the event that showcases the latest solutions, biotechnologies, new business models and innovations that will help Rio Grande do Sul producers deal with the challenges facing the next harvests. With global investments of around €2.8 billion per year in Research and Development (R&D) for agriculture, the multinational is offering its experiences through cutting-edge products and solutions that contribute to the growth of sustainable agricultural production.

The most recent advancement in the strategy to launch innovations that increase production per hectare can be seen firsthand in Rio Grande do Sul by visitors, which is Fox Supra, a new systemic fungicide specially developed for use in the controlling diseases that affect soy cultures. The formulation has two active ingredients, Protioconazole and Impirfluxam, which jointly act to offer high performance over various stages of infection caused by various diseases, such as Asian rust, target spot, brown spot, anthracnose, cercospora and powdery mildew.

For maize, two innovative products received extensions to their package leaflets and have started to support farmers against some of the main issues affecting the crop. These are the insecticide, Curbix^®, which has a highly efficient contact effect against both leafhoppers and bedbugs, helping in integrated pest management, and the other is the nematicide, Verango Prime, used for the effective and long-term control of nematodes in maize, such as root-knot nematode (Pratylenchus zeae) and root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita).  

"The strong pressure of pests and diseases in Brazilian agriculture demands solutions that help to sustainably reach all the existing productive potential. Bayer is proud to participate in crucial events in the evolution of agriculture alongside producers,″ said Marcio Santos, president and commercial leader of Bayer's agricultural division.

″We are very happy to be able to personally show Expodireto Cotrijal visitors the innovations we developed so they can produce more per hectare while reducing their environmental impact, through a more intelligent and efficient decision-making process based on data from their properties,″ he added.

According to Santos, the company's mission is to act as the main partner of rural producers in decision-making regarding their crops. "We will do this based on the knowledge and investment we have made in data science, plants, biological products and sustainable agrochemicals in recent decades, proving that if it is agro, it is Bayer," he said.

The company's main pavilion at the fair has an arena where conversations and interviews will be held with big names in the sector, in addition to an exclusive cashback campaign for customers who are part of Impulso Bayer, the company's relationship program. Visitors can also take advantage of the fair to register for the program or, if they are already members, receive support covering pesticide purchases and see the amounts they would receive back in cashback. This is calculation progressively, so the more products purchased, the greater the financial return. There are 35 products available.

Field of innovations

As the owner of the most modern biotechnologies in soy and corn, Bayer has planted areas with the latest hybrids and varieties that are totally focused on the region. For soybeans, visitors will be able to review the new Intacta2 Xtend^® biotechnology, which has already yielded more than 100 bags of soybeans per hectare in dozens of properties during the last harvest.

The Intacta2 Xtend^® technology offers an unprecedented concept for crops, as it offers protection against the six main caterpillars affecting soybean crops, through utilizing three different proteins that act simultaneously, providing more comprehensive protection with an emphasis on two more relevant species, Helicoverpa armigera and Spodoptera cosmioides.

Another benefit of the platform are the Xtend^® Biotec varieties, which generate high yields on non-Bt areas. Both technologies can be used for crop management with Xtend^® Herbicides, which arie highly efficient in controlling broadleaf weeds, such as horseweed, caruru, morning glory and black beggarticks.

Bayer, which already established Monsoy and Agroeste, is also present at the fair, presenting its product lines that already offer more than 20 varieties for soy with the new biotechnology platform and are adapted for each region of the country, bringing producers the best tool to obtain real gains with new levels of productivity.

For corn, producers can take advantage of the VTPRO4^® biotechnology, which offers high protection against pests that affect the aerial parts of plants, such as cabinet caterpillar, stem borer, threadworm and elasmo caterpillar, and root (pinworm), in addition to flexibility in weed management, such as dealing with tolerance to the Roundup herbicide, in high-yield hybrids adapted for the whole country.

The Dekalb brand is previewing, at the fair, its super-early DKB 235 hybrids, which have high production potential and are adapted for the southern region of the country, as well as DKB 230, which is a hyper-early hybrid with stability and productivity. Sementes Agroceres is showcasing the hybrids, AG 9021, hyper-early with high productive potential, and AG 9070, super-early and ensures productivity, safety and quality of grains in different environments. Meanwhile, the Agroeste brand is presenting its AS 1955 hybrids, which are super early and have high productive potential, ear uniformity and grain quality, as well as AS 1730, which is super early with stability and productivity.

Training and qualifications

During the Expodireto Cotrijal, Bayer will also announce the renewal of the partnership signed last year with Farsul/Senar-RS and the Technical Cooperative Network (RTC/CCGL) to expand field qualifications through the "i2x Acerte - Good Practices of Application," aimed at promoting the correct and safe use of herbicides in Brazil.

As the result of the partnership between Bayer and the state administrations of the National Rural Learning Service (Senar), which use their consolidated expertise in training rural workers for over 30 years to update and disseminate information, the program was launched in 2021 and has been adopted by at least seven states and the Federal District.

Four itinerant rooms were made available to Farsul/Senar-RS and RTC/CCGL, fully equipped by Bayer with simulators that reproduce spraying conditions in the field and facilitate the transfer of information and learning among participants.

Initiatives such as those led by Bayer, which organize training sessions for and qualify sprayer operators, rural producers, agricultural technicians, multipliers, cooperatives, distribution channels and employees, have already affected more than 60,000 people to date.

″For agriculture to evolve through new technologies, there is a co-creation effort with the entire chain, from the producer to the academy. Training and qualifications are a fundamental part of launching the Intacta2 Xtend^® Platform, so we can bring the best results to Brazilian soy farming,″ Santos said.

Crop protection

In a country like Brazil with a tropical climate, agricultural pesticides are allies in protecting crops in the fight against pests, diseases and weeds. During the fair, the producer can learn about some of the most innovative solutions in this regard, such as the herbicide for the pre-emergent management of weeds in corn, Adengo^®, which is an alternative with a broad spectrum of control and two modes of action (Isoxaflutol and Thiencarbazone), acting on both wide and narrow leaves. In addition, the solution has a stable and long-lasting formulation with proven efficiency in our field work.

Also noteworthy is the fungicide Fox^® Xpro, which combats the main diseases of soybeans, corn, cotton, winter cereals, sunflowers and beans, providing protection and helping increase productivity. Composed of three active ingredients, Fox^® Xpro features triple action against the main diseases that affect crops, such as the dreaded Asian soybean rust.

For insects that are difficult to control, such as bedbugs and corn leafhoppers, Bayer's portfolio offers producers the insecticide, Curbix 200 SC^®, which controls these insects in two ways, which are through ingestion and contact when moving across the surface of plants containing the product, offering a prolonged period of control. Applying Connect^® is also recommended, as it has a translaminar translocation action that affects nymphs. The insecticide also has a prolonged control period against bedbugs and leafhoppers. Another highlight is Larvin^®, a consolidated product that addresses problems caused by caterpillars, such as those of the genus Spodoptera, in soybean, corn and cotton crops.

For controlling nematodes, Bayer offers Verango^® Prime for soy and corn crops, with has the active ingredient, Fluopyram, an innovative molecule that offers effective and long-lasting control even at low dosages per hectare. A broad spectrum of control against the most diverse species of nematodes is key to the management of this pest. It is also worth mentioning that the nematicide, Verango^® Prime, has a healthy and synergistic coexistence with biological products, such as Serenade^®, a bactericidal fungicide with multiple modes of action used on crops, such as citrus, soybeans, cotton, beans and horticultural crops.

Digital technology

In addition to the entire Bayer portfolio, visitors to Expodireto Cotrijal can see the solutions developed by the company for digitizing the countryside and unlocking new opportunities to transform agriculture, said Alexandre Pimenta, director of Climate Fieldview.

The digital solutions area has an exclusive stand with all the latest advances in this segment, and where visitors can learn more about FieldView through demonstrations and conversations with experts, as well as buy various items, such as cabin combos, at the FieldView Shop.

Customers registered with Impulso Bayer can access specific vouchers to increase the accumulation of points and gain access to an exclusive course at Universidade FieldView. "Fair attendees can see practical examples of how the leading digital agriculture platform in the country has increasingly become a tool used daily by producers,″ Pimenta said.

For visitors already registered on the Orbia platform, when checking in at the Bayer stand, they will automatically earn 500 points in their account. Anyone who is not yet a customer can pre-register for the Impulso Bayer Program and earn 500 points. Also at the main stand, after the end of each lecture, up to three questions will be asked about the topic presented and whoever answers correctly will earn 1,000 points, which can be used to redeem products and services at Orbia. At Fox Supra’s lectures, only one question will be asked and anyone answering correctly will win a 50,000-point voucher.

At Expodireto, Bayer is showcasing its established functionalities and innovative business models, such as Bayer VAlora, which aims to optimize the density of corn seeds. "We are on the same side as producers, working more efficiently with different production environments and focusing on better profitability,″ Pimenta said.

″We also also presenting the advances achieved through PRO Carbono, a program co-created with Brazilian farmers, experts and companies to encourage the adoption of sustainable practices in the field, showing that productivity and sustainability go hand in hand,″ he added.

Shared knowledge

In addition to access to the company's major innovations for corn and soybean crops, farmers present at Expodireto Cotrijal can benefit from content and recommendations for their crops during conversations with specialists and by attending a series of lectures, including on the management of pests and diseases in soy and corn, the importance of digital agriculture and how to identify fake products.

''The reduction in soybean productivity caused by diseases is highly relevant, and in some cases can reduce the productive potential of crops by more than 50%, such as vases involving Leaf Spots, White Mold and Asian Soybean Rust, which will directly impact the profitability and sustainability of rural producers. That is why Bayer is launching yet another innovative product to combat soybean diseases, Fox Supra, a high-performance innovation with a carboxamide never used in this crop, which offers greater efficiency and potential for disease control. This also makes our portfolio of fungicides even more robust, to meet the demand and needs of our producers,″ said Willian Pelisser, market development agronomist at Bayer.