New AG International held an event in Campinas, Brazil, back in 2019. There I met Dr Fernando Garcia Nicodemos, CEO and founder of NCB. He explained to me how drones were already being used in Brazil for biocontrol with around half of Brazil’s sugarcane area being treated for sugarcane borer (Diatraea saccharalis) via drone application.
Sugarcane borer can be controlled using trichogramma galloi. The tiny wasp attacks the sugarcane borer eggs, depleting the birth rate. In 2017, NCB started the development of the BioBOT drone. “BioBOT is a device that can release Trichogramma into the form of loose eggs fully controlled by GPS. We can keep track of all digital data and control precisely, with maximum 2% of error, the releasing rate in milliliters per hectare of this biological input using a drone,” Nicodemos explained.
Biocontrol is just one area where biologicals have taken root in Brazilian agribusiness. One of the largest segments is inoculants. New AG International featured a report on the Brazilian inoculant market size in March 2020 and 82% of the cultivated soybean surface in Brazil, equivalent to 35 million hectares at the time, already uses inoculants, and has experienced 5% year-on-year growth in adoption rates.
“We’re seeing the tip of the iceberg,” said Antonio Carlos Zem, founder of BioTrop, when talking about the revolution taking place in Brazil’s biological market. Quality issues have been addressed and a 2-year shelf-life without refrigeration is usual for biological products,he enthuses in the article reproduced in this e-book. There’s another side to the equation for Zem. In his words, the chemical industry is exhausted. “Regulation means more products are being withdrawn than are being introduced. The costs are getting high, resistance means more applications, and growers are fed up with this. Biologicals coming at the right time.”
BioTrop launched their latest product in July 2021 – PastoMax. This is a ‘grass’ inoculant, combining Azospirillum and Pesudomas for phosphate solubilising properties.
Mark Trimmer, managing partner at DunhamTrimmer, gave a market update on the global biocontrol market at the Annual Biocontrol Industry Meeting in Basel in October 2022. At a global level, bioinsecticides is the leading product type, followed by biofungicides. Combined, these two sectors form around 80% of global market. Trimmer told New AG International that bionematicides have been growing rapidly, but since they start from a small base, it takes a long time for them to gain ground. Bioherbicides are still the missing piece he told the audience with a very small participation in that market. Brazil was highlighted as the growth market, largely because of the use of biocontrol in row crops. A lot of the growth in the bionematicide market is down to Brazil, said Trimmer.
Finding the right mixPart of the success of biologicals depends on the formulation. Evonik launched a new multifunctional carrier BREAK-THRU® BP 787 in 2022 that helps to extend the shelf-life of biological formulations. Dr. Daniela Kruse, Director New Markets, Interface & Performance at Evonik provides an overview of a product that is available in Brazil and Latin America. Kruse discusses the important metric of optimal water activity. One essential requirement for a long viability of microorganism is the optimal water activity (aw) within the formulation, explains Kruse.
One essential requirement for a long viability of microorganismis the optimal water activity (aw) within the formulation.
Special fertilizers are another area of huge potential in the Brazilian market. These products are typically formulated with some additional characteristic that differentiates them from conventional fertilizers, promoting better performance, stability, efficiency, or ease of handling.
The uptake of new products is underpinned by an active investment and technology sector. Agribusiness is one of the most important sectors of the Brazilian economy representing approximately 26% of the Brazilian GDP, according to PwC Agribusiness Leader Mauricio Moraes. In November 2022, PwC, the global professional services giant, acquired AgTech Garage, the largest agribusiness open innovation hub in Brazil. Founded in 2017, the innovation hub hosts more than a thousand start-ups connected to hundreds of clients in the whole agribusiness value chain. New AG International finds out more from PwC Agribusiness Leader Mauricio Moraes and José Tomé, the former CEO AgTech Garage.
We look forward to tracking some of the spinouts from AgTech Garage in the years to come, and seeing how the technology featuredin this e-book plays a role in Brazil’s burgeoning agri-sector. ●
Enjoy the e-book,
Luke Hutson
Chief Analyst & Portfolio Publisher
