The first crop of genetically modified SmartStax maize was planted in the US this month. A farmer in Texas planted the seed, which was purchased from the Dow AgroSciences affiliate, Triumph Seed. SmartStax maize was developed by Dow and Monsanto . The eight-gene stack is resistant to above- and below-ground pests and is tolerant to the herbicides, glyphosate and glufosinate-ammonium. Some 4 million acres (1.6 million ha) of SmartStax maize are expected to be planted in the US this year (Agrow ...

Mitsui & Co's agrochemical distribution company, Certis Europe, has been granted registration in the Netherlands for its fungicide, Scomrid Aerosol (imazalil 2%), for the control of stem botrytis grey mould (Botrytis cinerea) in tomatoes. The company says that the aerosol formulation allows precision application at the disease site. The product will be marketed by Certis in the Netherlands and the company will seek registration in other countries in Europe.

The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) has recommended the approval of Japanese company Kureha ’s triazole fungicide, ipconazole, as a new active ingredient. The fungicide is intended for use as a seed treatment on rice, wheat, barley and oats for the control of a range of diseases. Kureha and Chemtura agreed a global deal on the development of ipconazole-based seed treatments in 2007 (Agrow No 512, p 1). The APVMA decision is subject to a 28-day public comment ...

The US biopesticide company, Marrone Bio Innovations (MBI - Davis, California), has applied for US approvals for two new agricultural biopesticides. One is a Chromobacterium substugae-based bioinsecticide and the other is a bioherbicide derived from a Streptomyces spp marine microbe. The company hopes to launch the products in 2011. The bioinsecticide was licensed from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service and developed into a commercial product in under two years, MBI says. It shows ...

The US biopesticide company, BioWorks (Victor, New York), has launched the botanical insecticide/nematicide, Molt-X (azadirachtin 3%), in the US. It has been approved for use on turf, shrubs, trees, ornamentals and food crops for the control of a range of pests including aphids, thrips, mealybugs, scales and nematodes. Molt-X acts primarily as an insect growth regulator, as well as a repellent, anti-feedant and ovipositional deterrent, BioWorks notes. Its multiple modes of action make the ...

The US biopesticide company, Marrone Bio Innovations (MBI - Davis, California), has applied for US approvals for two new agricultural biopesticides. One is a Chromobacterium substugae-based bioinsecticide and the other is a bioherbicide derived from a Streptomyces spp marine microbe. The company hopes to launch the products in 2011. The bioinsecticide was licensed from the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service and developed into a commercial product in under two years, MBI says. It shows ...

Arysta LifeScience has introduced a new combination cereal herbicide in Canada based on two established active ingredients. Everest GBX (flucarbazone-sodium + Dow AgroSciences ’ fluroxypyr) is aimed at grass and broadleaf weed control in spring wheat. In combination with the phenoxy herbicides, MCPA or 2,4-D, Everest GBX controls more weeds than any other product on the market, Arysta says.

Sumitomo Chemical subsidiary Valent USA Corporation (Walnut Creek, California) is to introduce a combination insecticide/fungicide seed treatment, Inovate System, for soybeans in the US in January 2010. Inovate contains Valent’s insecticide, Nipsit Inside (clothianidin), and a custom combination of the fungicides, ipconazole and metalaxyl, in Chemtura’s Rancona Xxtra. Inovate System targets a range of seed and seedling diseases and controls a number of insect pests, Valent points out.

The Canadian company, Innovotech (Edmonton, Alberta), is conducting commercial-scale field trials of its seed treatment, Agress (oxysilver nitrate), on beans in Alberta this year. Tests conducted last year showed that Agress was as effective or superior to streptomycin against bean blight (Xanthomonas campestris pv phaseoli) on beans, peas and soybeans (Agrow No 558, p 22). Innovotech plans to launch the product in the US and Canada in 2010. A US approval decision has been scheduled for the ...

The first crop of genetically modified SmartStax maize was planted in the US this month. A farmer in Texas planted the seed, which was purchased from the Dow AgroSciences affiliate, Triumph Seed. SmartStax maize was developed by Dow and Monsanto . The eight-gene stack is resistant to above- and below-ground pests and is tolerant to the herbicides, glyphosate and glufosinate-ammonium. Some 4 million acres (1.6 million ha) of SmartStax maize are expected to be planted in the US this year (Agrow ...

Brazil has provisionally approved Bayer CropScience ’s genetically modified glufosinate-tolerant LibertyLink soybeans for commercial cultivation. The national commission for biosafety, the CTNBio, gave the green light for two Bayer registration applications for the soybean line at its first meeting of the year, earlier this month. They are for use in two regions, the centre-west and the south, and carry event A5547-127. LibertyLink soybeans are fully approved for cultivation in the US and ...

Bayer CropScience plans to launch the Bacillus firmus-based bionematicide seed treatment, Votivo, in the US in 2011. It will conduct on-farm trials with select growers and seed companies next year. Bayer acquired the B firmus technology among assets of the Israeli biopesticide company, AgroGreen, earlier this year (Agrow No 565, p 2). Votivo suppresses attacks from early season nematodes by forming a “living barrier” of bacteria around the roots of soybeans, maize and cotton, Bayer points ...

The US diagnostics company, EnviroLogix (Portland, Maine), has introduced a second test kit for the detection of the Bt Cry2A toxin in genetically modified insect-resistant maize. The “QuickStix Kit for Cry2A Leaf & Seed” can be used for leaf tissue and single seed samples, the company points out. It previously introduced a bulk grain kit (Agrow No 577, p 27). The kits can be used to detect the Cry2Ab2 toxin in Monsanto’s Genuity VT Triple PRO maize and in Monsanto/Dow AgroSciences’ SmartStax ...