Integration is the Revolution: Hybrid Pesticides will Facilitate the Transition to Sustainable Agriculture

The four P’s for achieving sustainable agriculture are People, Prosperity, the Planet and Perpetuity. We believe that in order to facilitate the transition to sustainable agriculture, we in the industry need to provide pragmatic solutions that will provide increasing safety and health while keeping the perpetuity of the food chain. We, in STK practices the 4th ‘P’ with its first biologic-based hybrid product REGEV™, which combines a botanical active ingredient from the Melaleuca alternifolia and difenoconazole, a broad spectrum preventive and curative hybrid foliar fungicide for the control and suppression of fungal plant diseases. 

 

Use of REGEV™ reduces chemical impact and residues – the botanical active ingredient part of the formulation leaves no residue at all – and helps to manage resistance, while eliminating the need for mixing or rotating. Hybrid products like REGEV™ make these advantages of Botanical Based Solutions (“BBS”) more accessible to farmers. The great thing is that once they start using them, they see the benefits for themselves and are keen to use them again. With products like this, we are building a bridge to more sustainable agriculture, and greater perpetuity in the production of our food.

 

Our entire concept is develop to formulations that would minimize the impact of synthetic product. This meant reducing artificial residues and the overall chemical load. Naturally, we were looking for safety of field-workers, their families, and surrounding communities

 

At STK, we refer to our biological formulations as ‘food protection solutions’ – they address the need for producing more abundant, nutritious and continuous harvests, and positively impact all partners in the food delivery chain. Our new solutions are rational and understand the challenges of the food chain and the farmers. Therefore, we need to provide solutions and technologies that will improve parameters like yield, health, quality and safety to keep the Guy Elitzur, CEO of STK Stockton
food chain perpetually working.

 
Would you please introduce the situation of hybrid pesticide in globe?  Registration regulation, regular products, market recognition, contribution to sustainable agriculture…?

 

Integration is the Revolution! The market potential is huge in an age where demand and available resources are swiftly moving in opposite directions. We all understand the essential role that chemicals play in crop production and replacing them is a process. This is a real game-changer in this industry, shifting from exclusive dependency on chemicals to a less harmful and more productive ‘hybrid’ approach that combines conventional methods with cutting-edge biologics, safely controlling crop diseases while strengthening the efficacy of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs for multiple crops across the globe. 

 

Hybrid pesticides are not common in the market today, although we believe that biologic-based hybrid formulations definitively address current and future needs of global agriculture markets and will be a major enabler in food protection in the field-to-fork ecosystem. We think hybrids will accelerate the integration of biologicals solutions into conventional programs.

 

In fact, in 2017, STK proudly launched REGEV™, our first pre-mix hybrid fungicide product for easy integration into conventional spraying programs. This is a unique contribution in the field of bio-ag innovation, a genuine breakthrough in alleviating chemical loads through identifying plant molecules that can be commercialized into viable food protection alternatives for growers. STK has lead a paradigm shift from exclusive dependency on chemicals to a less harmful and more productive hybrid approach that combines conventional methods with cutting-edge biologics.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
Traditional, chemical-based crop protection is limited to driving efficiency in controlling pests, often at the cost of residual harm to both the crop and the Earth. Growers have relied heavily on synthetic chemical pesticides, but their availability is now declining as a result of new regulations and the evolution of resistance in pest populations. Each country in the world poses its own set of regulatory challenges and economic challenges that must be addressed. 

 

Biologic solutions positively impact every link in the delivery chain while making good on the promise of a sustainable agro ecosystem. New advance bio technologies such as biopesticide and hybrids, are regulated by systems designed originally for chemical pesticides that have created market entry barriers by imposing heavy costs on the industry. 

 

 

Hybrid products will be instrumental in helping growers adopt to future food protection challenges. Hybrid are tank-ready biologic solutions, with excellent synergy between the chemical and biological active ingredients, for growers looking for an easier path to adopt integrated pest management (IPM) into their spraying programs. Hybrid solutions are as a major catalyst for enabling the future of food protection, lowering the impact of chemicals, ensuring a more abundant and healthier food supply. The hybrid approach is a practical path towards a more secure and sustainable agricultural ecosystem. 

 

One way to increase food availability is to improve the management of pests-resistance. Plant extract-based solutions are proven in fighting diseases and strengthening the efficacy of integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs for multiple crops across the globe. Incorporating biologics into conventional spraying programs is the next logical revolution in enabling food growers in all sectors and geographies to better meet market demand, reduce their ecological footprint and thrive economically.

 

STK’s innovative biologic food protection solutions complement the conventional, at once extending the lifespan of chemical efficacy and mitigating its harmful effects. Our solutions will help food growers in all sectors and geographies to better meet demand, reduce their ecological footprint and thrive economically. 

 

At STK, we’re fully on-board with this holistic approach that takes the long view of the entire value chain from field-to-fork. STK partners with growers, understands their ongoing challenges in making the right investments for nurturing crops, safe-guarding their fields and family and maintaining viable relationships with their customers – the supermarket chains and fresh, frozen and processed food brands that feed us all. By adopting the food protection ethos as the core of our identity, STK enters into a forward-looking, responsible social contract with the greater ecosystem, from plantation to plate.