While production and supply within the agrochemicals market were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the future of the industry, nonetheless, continues to be positive, driven by global population growth, the increasing need to cut crop losses and maximize yields, consumer trends toward sustainably produced food, and the role of agrochemicals in helping to mitigate climate change. However, that’s not to say all is rosy.
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Many analysts predict that the global market for biopesticides will double over the next five years — but much of this growth won’t come from traditional markets.
“Medical marijuana,” says Dennis Fugate, Industry Manager for our Agriculture and Specialty Pesticide practice, “is one of the more unusual markets fueling the increased demand for biopesticides.” Because the compounds that are used in biopesticides have very specific modes of action, they don’t affect non-targeted organisms, making them very appealing to growers of medical marijuana. And, because biopesticides don’t leave behind dangerous residues, they’ve become equally as appealing to users of medical marijuana.
Demand for biostimulants is growing rapidly, fueled in part by consumer trends toward wellness and organic produce, along with rising environmental concerns. Biostimulants contain organic substances such as humic acid, vitamins, hormones, and microorganisms that stimulate natural processes to enhance crop quality. When applied to plants or rhizosphere, biostimulants boost nutrient efficiency, resulting in increased root growth, greater water-holding capacity, and increased microbial activity.
“Population growth is another factor that is shifting attention to biostimulants,” says Dennis Fugate, Industry Manager for our Agriculture and Specialty Pesticide practice. The population is expected to increase from 7.3 billion in 2015 to 9.7 billion in 2050 — with global food demand projected to rise 59%-89% by 2050. “Biostimulants are expected to play a key role in significantly and sustainably increasing the yield of agricultural crops.”
Here are seven reasons why fruit and vegetable growers are adopting biostimulants.Continue reading
Organic farming may be on the rise, but — at the same time — farmers say they aren’t planning to expand their organic production. Why the disconnect? According to Dennis Fugate, Agriculture Industry Manager for our Agriculture and Specialty Pesticide practice, “Farmers, in general, feel that demand for organics may have leveled off.” Consistent with this statement, a USDA survey of organic growers indicated that only 29% of organic farmers expected to expand their production, with 8% stating that they would discontinue or decrease their production.”
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The use of drones is expected to increase in the never-ending effort to control mosquitoes, according to new research by Kline.
The unmanned aerial vehicles allow for more direct targets of application and reduce potential exposure of chemicals to applicators. Currently, drones are mostly used for scouting missions and to photograph areas of potential water accumulation; they’re also useful in larvicide treatments. Kline forecasts a steady growth of almost 2.4% over the next five years overall; in fact, 50% of respondents said they planned to use drones in the near future. Meanwhile, 25% planned to increase their use of larvicides to control mosquitoes, and another 25% said they planned to use more traps and monitors. Just over 15% of respondents said they were looking at increasing their coverage area to provide more effective control.
Join a discussion of a comprehensive analysis examining U.S. crop protection manufacturers efforts to mitigate herbicide resistance by combining two or more herbicidal modes of action, GMO crops and New Modes of herbicidal action. This discussion will include an analysis of the herbicide resistance problem and technologies developed to mitigate the problem. Technology market shares and future growth will be discussed.
The year ahead could prove to be game–changing in the non-crop part of the agrochemicals industry, as Bayer has announced plans to divest its Environmental Science division. The division currently generates sales of approximately EUR 600 million (USD 717 million) in 2019. The divestment includes leading solutions across five main segments:
The seed treatments market is one of the most resilient and consistently growing markets within the global agrochemicals industry. Currently estimated to be worth almost USD 4.5 billion across 12 key countries, as analyzed by Kline — and growing at a CAGR of 3.1% annually — the market sector has proven to be a lucrative industry for agrochemical manufacturers and distributors. However, it has been challenged to change due to various factors.
Weed resistance to herbicides is nothing new, but in the past 30 years, the number and spectrum of herbicide resistance have exploded and caused economic concern. In 1991, 120 weed biotypes resistant to triazine herbicides and 15 other herbicide families were documented throughout the world. Since then, nearly 500 unique cases of herbicide resistance have been reported. Some of the early herbicide resistance issues were mitigated through the development of corn and soybean crops resistant to the broad-spectrum herbicide glyphosate. However, repeated use of glyphosate over many years has led to widespread resistance of critical weeds to glyphosate. This has created a situation where farmers are concerned, and even panicked, by their inability to control weeds.
