Valent BioSciences announces record sales for its PGR

Valent BioSciences Corporation (VBC), a leader in biorational product development for agriculture, public health, and forestry worldwide, announced it has achieved record sales for ReTain Plant Growth Regulator in line with a record apple crop in Washington state, offsetting increasing challenges among growers to secure farm labor.

Launched in 1996, ReTain is an advanced formulation of the biochemical aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG). A natural compound produced through fermentation, AVG inhibits the biosynthesis of ethylene in plants and has become a mainstay in harvest management programs in the U.S. and other prominent pome and stone fruit producing regions of the world.

Biorationals are products typically derived from biological origins that are highly specific in their activity while providing economic, health, and/or environmental benefits. Biorational products include microbial insecticides, fungicides, and nematicides, as well as plant growth regulators used in production agriculture and for managing plant growth, quality and stress in crops.

"We applaud the efforts of the Washington apple industry for another record crop and are proud of the role our products and support team have played in achieving this milestone," said Johan Pienaar, VBC's global business manager for the company's plant growth regulator business unit. Pienaar indicates that Washington is forecasting an apple crop in the range of 122 million packed boxes for 2012, 10% higher than the record of 110 million boxes set last year.

By using ReTain, growers are able to delay ripening in desired blocks within the orchard by precise amounts of time. In treating multiple blocks, growers stagger their harvesting activities to align with the availability of their labor resources while at the same time ensuring their fruit is picked at its maximum level of quality.

Byron Phillips, the local sales representative for VBC's sister company Valent U.S.A. Corporation, said the ReTain experience has been a clear case of growers gaining knowledge and experience with a technology that brings an immediate impact on their bottom line.

"We've worked hand-in-hand with the Washington apple industry developing this product for the last fifteen years," Phillips said. "Over time, we've become better at adjusting rates and timing based upon the variety, block, and the goals of the particular grower. By working together and sharing information, we continue to improve."

Pienaar reports that additional products to support VBC's extensive portfolio of biorational sizing and thinning solutions are nearing commercialization. The company is poised to launch its next offering in 2013.