AgBiTech expands distribution of bioinsecticides and reaches the South region

Australian-American AgBiTech enters the 2019-20 harvest with the prospect of reaching 2 million hectares of crops treated with its line of pesticides. The company invested heavily in the Research & Development area, intensified its presence in the Cerrado agricultural frontier and this week took an important step to expand business in the South region, through a commercial agreement sealed with the distributor Agro 100.

Part of a group made up of 20 companies, with an annual turnover of approximately R$4 billion in agribusiness, Agro 100 was founded in 1996, in Londrina. In 2017, it received investment from the Aqua Capital fund. The distributor records annual sales of around R$1,6 billion, in addition to having 170 agronomists in 43 points of sale covering 200 municipalities, from Paraná to the south of Mato Grosso do Sul.

CEO of Agro 100, agronomist Renato Seraphim states that the commercial partnership with AgBiTech is anchored in the innovation proposed by the Australian-American company, and also in the high growth potential of biological control within the producer's pest management. “We anticipate to help the producer to control caterpillars more effectively and we understand that the union between chemical and biological technology will allow us to increase the profitability of the field”, summarizes Seraphim.

According to the executive, the appearance of caterpillars at the beginning of planting, in soybean regions with limited rainfall, could be repeated in the South of the country at some point. Therefore, he adds, through an innovation platform called Tech 100, Agro 100 carries out advanced studies, involving the management of caterpillars caused by baculoviruses, in the agricultural environments where the distributor operates.

For Seraphim, the breakdown of resistance in Intact or Bt soybeans is another aspect that should contribute to the growth of the baculovirus market. “We have almost reached the limit of knowledge regarding chemicals. These require high research costs and obtaining records takes time, particularly in Brazil. New solutions will come from genetics, nutrition and biological control”, he assesses. “We have no doubt that the baculovirus market will experience significant and growing growth. Such products tend to be integrated once and for all into the producer’s caterpillar management.” 

The BIP – Business Intelligence Panel – survey, by the consultancy Spark Inteligencia Estratégica, confirms the executive's expectations. The study shows that in soybean farming, organic products generated US$ 100 million in the 2018-19 harvest, an increase of 45%. The area treated with inputs of this kind in soy rose to 7,8 million hectares, an increase of 152% compared to the previous cycle.

The commercial director of AgBiTech Brasil, agronomist Marcelo Giuliano, highlights that the agreement signed with Agro 100 adds value to the company's portfolio, made up of the lizardicides Armigen, Cartugen, Chrysogen, Lepigen, Surtivo Soja, Surtivo Plus, and Surtivo Ultra.

“This partnership will certainly boost AgBiTech Brasil's business while at the same time bringing innovation and new management practices to transfer more profitability to the Agro 100 customer”, reinforces Adriano Vilas Boas, general director of AgBiTech in Latin America.