BASF aims to capture 10% of biologicals market in Brazil with new product launches

Date:12-30-2024

One of the most prominent players in the Brazilian agrochemical market, multinational BASF, is now looking to gain more market share in the biological inputs sector. 

To achieve its desired 10% slice of this segment, the company is betting on new product launches.

Agricultural engineer Marcelo Batistela, Vice President of Agricultural Solutions at BASF, states that 2025 will see an important launch for biological pest and disease control. According to him, the focus of the 35 products to be introduced is primarily on bio fungicides.

Currently, BASF's biological inputs portfolio in Latin America includes over 20 products. A standout product is the biological nematicide Votivo Prime, which contains Bacillus firmus strain I-1582. This product is registered for use across all crops against major nematode pests: soybean cyst nematode (Heterodera glycines); root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne graminicola); root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne javanica); lesion nematode (Pratylenchus brachyurus); and reniform nematode (Rotylenchulus reniformis).

"We made an important launch this year in seed treatment that aligns with our ambition. The market has increasingly adopted biologicals, which I think is great. BASF believes in, and our strategy focuses on increasingly combining different technologies," including the association of chemical and biological products, the executive emphasized.

In the medium term, BASF's Vice President of Agricultural Solutions projects more launches in biotechnology. For the 2028-2029 season, Marcelo Batistela anticipates the introduction of more solutions against nematodes. Additionally, he notes, there will be innovations in crop protection, with new modes of action in fungicides, insecticides, herbicides, and seed treatment.

The executive stated that one of the strategic pillars for 2025 is to continue investing in technology and innovation, focusing on "making agriculture increasingly resilient and sustainable, doing more with less." BASF plans to launch "eight major technologies and more than 25 new products" from next year until the end of this decade, Batistela said.

Meanwhile, Ademar De Geroni Júnior, Vice President of Strategic Marketing for Latin America at BASF, reaffirmed that one of the company's priorities is to encourage increased use of biological products. To achieve this, he specifies that BASF will continue to launch new products and seek partnerships with companies specialized in biologicals that need access to BASF's market reach.

Currently, the multinational doesn't have its own biologicals factory in Brazil. Its main inoculant plant is located in Argentina, partially serving the Brazilian market. The remaining products are manufactured through partnerships with local industries, along with biological formulations produced in Europe.

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)