STRATEGY A featured segment designed to share business- critical information to seed-selling professionals. Visit SeedWorld.com to download this department and other tools. Here’s What You Need to Know About Biologicals Experts weigh in on biological seed-applied solutions and the role they play. Joe Funk jfunk@issuesink.com 34 / SEEDWORLD.COM DECEMBER 2017 biographies Mark Howieson serves as a Global Biological Seed Solutions R&D team leader for BASF Functional Crop Care. Mark provides leadership and technical direction to the formulation and application teams. Mark and his team partner with the global BASF seed solution laboratory network to test and validate agronomic benefits of new biological and chemical seed treatments as well as functional coatings and colorants. Mark leads projects that include developing new seed-applied biological innovations to complement conventional offers across the globe. Mark is located in BASF’s global R&D center based in Ames, Iowa, US. Dr. Amit Vasavada is the Sr. Vice President of R&D and Chief Technology Officer at Marrone Bio Innovations in Davis, California. He has been involved in translational R&D, process development and manufacturing of bio- based products in agriculture, industrial and pharmaceutical sectors. He is a co-inventor on three patents and earned his Ph.D. in Applied Microbiology at the University of California, Davis. Seed World: What are biologicals designed to do? How do they work? Mark Howieson: Biologicals are naturally occurring organ- isms, plant extracts or organic substances that comple- ment the seed’s genetics and traits, as well as conventional chemical seed treatments, to enhance plant vigor and establishment. Biologicals benefit plant growth in many ways, including increased nutrient availability, produc- tion of plant-growth promot- ing substances, as well as disease and pest control. Amit Vasavada: Their use is growing rapidly worldwide, and they are in demand for their value in IPM programs to enhance yields and quality along with their low impact on the environment. They offer additional benefits, such as complex and novel modes of action for resistance manage- ment to extend the product life of conventional pesticides. They also add flexibility in a traditional farming operation with reduced pre-harvest inter- vals to manage residues for exported produce, and shorter field re-entry times for workers, which reduces labor costs. Biopesticides are especially suited for use in: • Rotation with chemicals in tra- ditional programs to manage for pesticide resistance. • Certified organic production systems. • Grower programs where pes- ticide residue management is important for harvest manage- ment and/or export markets. • Crops with intensive labor demands to gain maximum flexibility in managing work crews. SW: What are the different types of biologicals? MH: The BASF portfolio includes: biocontrols and pheromones for IPM insect control systems; biostimu- lants and inoculants for foliar, in-furrow and seed applica- tions, as well as for agricul- tural, specialty and non-crop applications (e.g., turf and ornamental markets). AV: Both biostimulants and biopesticides can be used as preplant, foliar, in-furrow and