Liben Crop Science: Driving agricultural transformation and advancement through collaborative development of technicals and formulations

Date:02-29-2024

With the vision of ″being rooted in agriculture, genuine at heart; embracing pragmatism and innovation, and striving for excellence″, Lianyungang Liben Crop Science Co., Ltd. is deeply intertwined with China’s pesticide industry. Functioning as both a steadfast witness and an active participant, the company plays a vital role in the industry’s flourishing path.

Harnessing its resource advantages, Liben Crop Science places a strategic focus on technical production, aspiring to position itself as a leading formulation platform. The company’s objective is to develop products with global appeal, integrating scale advantages, industry chain strengths, and technological prowess to enhance market competitiveness for each product, thereby driving swift company growth. Recent years have seen a notable rise in Liben Crop Science’s market position, solidifying its standing among the top 10 companies in China’s pesticide industry and securing a position within the top 20 in the global agrochemical industry.

Ascending market standing: securing a spot among the global top 20

Lianyungang Liben Crop Science Co., Ltd., originally known as Lianyungang Second Pesticide Factory, is a well-established national designated large modern enterprise for pesticide production. Founded in 1965, the company was renamed Lianyungang Liben Crop Science Co., Ltd. in 2016. Currently, the company possesses multiple pesticide production bases spanning over 8,000 mu in total area, with an annual production capacity exceeding 500,000 tons, boasting total assets of RMB8.85 billion and net assets of RMB2.25 billion. 

In recent years, Liben Crop Science has accelerated its market growth through the collaborative development of technicals and formulations, targeting both domestic and overseas markets. In 2016, the pesticide sales reached RMB1.966 billion, and by 2022, it surged beyond the ten billion mark, reaching RMB10.49 billion. The compound annual growth rate from 2016 to 2022 stands at an impressive 32.19%, establishing the company as one of the fastest-growing companies in pesticide sales in China.

Since 2016, Liben Crop Science has maintained a consistent and stable presence in the Top 100 China’s Pesticide Companies for six consecutive years, securing the fifth position in the list for the year 2023.

In 2022, the global sales of pesticides for crop use amounted to US$78.715 billion, representing a year-on-year growth of 9.9%. During the same period, Liben Crop Science achieved pesticide sales of US$1.661 billion (RMB10.49 billion). This marked a robust growth of 32.5% compared to the previous year, surpassing the overall global pesticide market growth by 22.6 percentage points. This achievement positioned Liben Crop Science at the 12th position in the Top 20 Global Agrochemical Companies of the year.

Leveraging the advantages of complete industry chain to enhance market competitiveness

The substantial market growth of Liben Crop Science didn't happen out of the blue. The company strategically builds on its own resources, systematically reinforces its technical production capacity advantage, and meticulously develops a comprehensive chain that encompasses ″source (captive power generation + basic chemical raw materials) + intermediates + technicals + formulations″. This strategic framework, starting from fundamental chemical raw materials with the support of a captive power generation facility, allows Liben Crop Science to boast the longest technical production chain domestically, aligning with its ambition to lead in each product within the industry.

Liben Crop Science stands out with robust technical production capabilities across various pesticide categories, including herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. Specifically, the technical production capacities are as follows: 1) herbicides: 75,000 t/a glufosinate, 80,000 t/a L-glufosinate, 50,000 t/a glyphosate, 100,000 t/a triazines (e.g., atrazine, ametryn, prometryn, and terbuthylazine), 10,000 t/a mesotrione, and 5,000 t/a nicosulfuron; 2) fungicides: 15,000 t/a azoxystrobin, 3,000 t/a pyraclostrobin, and 3,000 t/a isoprothiolane; and 3) insecticides: 20,000 t/a chlorantraniliprole, 1,000 t/a nitenpyram, 20,000 t/a chlorpyrifos, and 6,000 t/a phoxim.

Liben Crop Science has established a strong presence in various market segments with leading products among its technicals. Noteworthy products include glyphosate, glufosinate, atrazine, mesotrione, azoxystrobin, pyraclostrobin, chlorantraniliprole, and others. The company’s robust market competitiveness is attributed to its advantages in production scale, production processes, and the industrial chain associated with these key products.

For atrazine, the largest product in triazine herbicides, the company boasts an annual production capacity of 600,000 tons for chlor-alkali, which provides the convenience of self-producing sodium hydroxide, chlorine, sodium cyanide and cyanuric chloride, and greatly reduces the production cost of atrazine.

Glyphosate and glufosinate, as the first and second largest products in the category of non-selective herbicides, respectively, have a broad market foundation. As the promotion of genetically modified crops continues to gain momentum, their market outlook becomes increasingly optimistic. Liben Crop Science employs the internationally advanced IDA process to manufacture glyphosate technical, utilizing natural gas as the feed material. This process enables complete self-supply of intermediates such as hydrocyanic acid, formaldehyde, and phosphorous acid, creating an environmentally friendly, efficient, and entirely self-produced industrial chain, and greatly enhancing the intrinsic quality and competitiveness of products. In 2022, the company achieved a successful commencement of production with an annual capacity of 75,000 tons of glufosinate technical. Key technicals and intermediates, including dimethyl phosphite, sodium cyanide, and liquid ammonia, are entirely self-supplied, positioning the company as the largest and the most competitive manufacturer of glufosinate technicals globally. With a designed production capacity of 80,000 t/a for L-glufosinate, Liben Crop Science is committed to leveraging industrial chain advantages and regional energy benefits to create a low-carbon and efficient L-glufosinate industrial chain. The future market development trends for glyphosate, glufosinate, and L-glufosinate will ultimately hinge on the cost-effectiveness of products. The company remains dedicated to consistently providing a series of cost-effective products to meet the needs of farmers.

Azoxystrobin, the predominant product in strobilurin fungicides, holds the distinction of being the largest in its category, and Liben Crop Science boasts the world’s largest annual production capacity of 15,000 tons. The company achieves a fully independent and comprehensive production chain by self-producing key intermediates such as 4,6-dichloropyrimidine and benzofuranone.

In addition, Liben Crop Science stands as the largest manufacturer of phoxim technical in China, commanding a market share of over 60%. The company ensures self-production of key technicals and intermediates, including benzyl chloride, sodium cyanide, phenylacetonitrile, ethyl chloride, and sodium hydroxide. This approach not only guarantees an efficient and reliable supply of raw materials but also maximizes the advantages of scale and cost for the company.

Building upon the advantages in technicals to become a platform for formulations

Building upon the advantages in technicals, Liben Crop Science is strategically establishing a platform for formulations, with a focus on comprehensive coverage and optimization of products related to technicals.

The company utilizes its self-produced glufosinate technical to create a diverse product range, including single and combined formulations. Examples include 200 g/L glufosinate AS, 10% glufosinate AS, 36% glufosinate · glyphosate SL, 33% flumioxazin · glufosinate SC, 20% fluoroglycofen-ethyl · glufosinate ME, and 23% glufosinate · quizalofop-P· fluoroglycofen-ethyl ME. Among them, the 200 g/L glufosinate AS is also effective on three transformation events of Dabeinong: DBN9858 (corn), DBN9936 (corn), and DBN9004 (soybean).

Green & high-end brand glufosinate

Capitalizing on its production advantage in glyphosate, the company has introduced a series of glyphosate products, including 33% glyphosate-monoammonium AS, 41% glyphosate-isopropylammonium AS, 55.3% glyphosate-isopropylammonium AS, 62% glyphosate-isopropylammonium AS, and 74.7% glyphosate-isopropylammonium SG. Among these, the 41% glyphosate-isopropylammonium AS is also effective on three transformation events (DBN9858 (corn), DBN9936 (corn), and DBN9004 (soybean)) of Dabeinong and one transformation event (Zhonghuang 6106) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Glyphosate series products

Liben Crop Science has developed a prominent product matrix focusing on triazine herbicides that are also compatible with nicosulfuron and mesotrione. The company has introduced a range of related products, including 8% nicosulfuron OD, 38% atrazine SC, 50% atrazine SC, 80% ametryn WP, 90% atrazine WG, 78% MCPA · ametryn · diuron WP, 24% nicosulfuron · atrazine OD, 25% mesotrione · atrazine OD, 30% mesotrione · nicosulfuron · atrazine OD, 25% mesotrione · atrazine OD, and more.

Triazine series products

In the realm of insecticides, chlorantraniliprole stands out as the world’s largest insecticide. With the expiration of its compound patents, there has been a surge in the development of chlorantraniliprole-based products in China. Liben Crop Science, with an annual production capacity of 20,000 tons of chlorantraniliprole technical, plays a significant role in this landscape. The registered formulation products of the company include 10% chlorantraniliprole · lufenuron SC, and 200 g/L chlorantraniliprole SC. Additionally, products to be registered in the future include 10% chlorantraniliprole + 10% indoxacarb SC, 10% chlorantraniliprole + 20% methoxyfenozide SC, 100 g/L chlorantraniliprole + 200 g/L thiamethoxam SC, 9.3% chlorantraniliprole + 4.7% lambda-cyhalothrin ZC, and more.

Chlorantraniliprole series products

In the realm of strobilurin fungicides, the two most popular products are azoxystrobin and pyraclostrobin. Liben Crop Science offers a range of registered formulation products, including 30% difenoconazole · azoxystrobin SC, 250 g/L azoxystrobin SC, 40% difenoconazole · pyraclostrobin SC, 25% pyraclostrobin SC, 250 g/L pyraclostrobin EC, 30% pyraclostrobin EC, and 42% pyraclostrobin · tebuconazole EC. Additionally, the company has products in the registration process, such as 18% prothioconazole + 22% azoxystrobin SC, 10% pyraclostrobin + 30% oxine-copper SC, 29% pyraclostrobin + 14% fluxapyroxad SC, 25% pyraclostrobin + 15% difenoconazole SC, 20% pyraclostrobin + 15% epoxiconazole SC, and more.

Pyraclostrobin series products

Azoxystrobin series products

Liben Crop Science is dedicated to continuous improvement and upgrading of its technicals and the development of formulation products, to offer customers and growers with higher-quality, superior products and more scientifically integrated solutions, to better serve global agricultural production. Furthermore, in alignment with the policy of reducing usage and increasing efficiency, the company strives to contribute more to ensuring food security and safety.

Liben Crop Science boasts a professional pesticide registration team and invests considerable efforts in global pesticide registrations. While prioritizing independent registrations, the company also extends strong support to its customers. In China, Liben Crop Science has secured over 200 registrations, and globally, it has obtained 300+ registrations in regions and countries including the European Union, Australia, and Brazil. Additionally, there are over 1000 registrations currently in progress. This extensive portfolio of pesticide registrations spans a comprehensive range of categories, showcasing the company’s unwavering commitment to meeting diverse needs across different regions and crops worldwide. This not only reflects Liben Crop Science’s long-term commitment to technological improvement but also underscores its professional expertise in adhering to international standards and regulations.

Guided by the philosophy of ″Nurturing crop health, achieving planting dreams″, Liben Crop Science actively fulfills its social responsibility for sustainable development; embracing the concept of green development, it continuously enhances the entire green industry chain. Liben Crop Science is devoted to delivering agricultural producers safer, more efficient, and economically sound plant protection solutions.

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