CCAB Agro registers baculovirus in Brazil

 

The CCAB Agro (Brazilian Agricultural Cooperatives Company) registered two baculovirus-based biological products for the control of caterpillars: Cartugen CCAB and Chrysogen CCAB. In addition to these, the company also launched the CCAB soybean, a mixture of biological agents, against Helicoverpa and Pseudoplusia, including caterpillars.

 

"Our two new baculoviruses are agents that already exist in nature and have been isolated industrially to act on specific pests. But we cannot think of biological solutions, be it micro, viruses and bacteria, or macro, as insects, as exclusive means for sanitary defense. However, they represent a significant asset for the farmer," explained CCAB's Director of Operations Emiliano Mellis.

 

"Although they are technical products with a more complex application than that of pesticides, the biological ones are gaining space in the phytosanitary defense program in Brazil, as they contribute to a more complete pest management," explained Mellis. Storage, he said, can be done at room temperature for up to six months, and, for longer life, they require refrigeration. CCAB lends freezers to producers, which guarantee the storage of the product from one crop to the next.

 

According to the manufacturer, all three products facilitate integrated pest management (IPM) strategies, while helping to avoid resistance to the currently active chemical principles. Because they are baculoviruses, they are harmless to human health, the environment and so-called "natural enemies" of pests.

 

The CEO of CCAB, Jones Yasuda, emphasized that the offer of new products proves the agility and innovation of the company. CCAB is currently the largest Brazilian company for the registration of generic and biological pesticides, with a portfolio that has some 110 products for various agricultural crops in different stages of registration.

 

"When in 2011, in an unprecedented initiative, we brought Emamectin Benzoate and the HzNPV virus into the country to combat helicoverpa, we understood that there was a lot of ground for innovation and we went for it. This is aligned with CCBA's mission of being a technical reference in inputs for farmers in the country," said Yasuda.

 

"These biological products answer the rural producer’s plea for supplementary technologies for health protection, so that during the application for registration we have the support of several representative entities of agricultural producers, such as cotton and soy," explained Yasuda.