Bioceres Crop Solutions Corp. has received approval from Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA- Ministério da Agricultura e Pecuária) for three new bio-insecticidal/bio-nematicidal solutions. These solutions are derived from inactivated cells of the company’s proprietary Burkholderia platform.
The approval represents a significant regulatory milestone in the Brazilian market, marking the first endorsement of biological products formulated from fully inactivated microorganisms, according to a press release. Bioceres’ bio-control solutions utilize the metabolites of inactivated microorganisms. These products offer heightened effectiveness, precision, extended shelf-life, and formulation stability. They also provide greater consistency in their mode of action compared to live microbes. Additionally, non-living bacteria-based products can be formulated to be more potent and at significantly lower costs, approaching cost parity with less favorable chemical alternatives currently available.
Bioceres’ products, based on metabolites derived from Burkholderia, were first registered in the United States in 2014. Since then, they have been commercialized in Mexico, Peru, Chile, Türkiye, and various parts of Africa. In the United States alone, these products are used for nematicidal and insecticidal seed treatment on more than 4 million hectares (over 10 million acres) of corn, cotton, and soybeans. They effectively replace abamectin in seed treatments while enhancing the control of soil-dwelling insect pests that are typically targeted by neonicotinoids, pyrethroids, and organophosphates.
Brazil leads the global bio-control market, particularly in row crops, and is poised to become the largest individual bio-control market by 2030. Currently, bio-insecticides and bio-nematicides represent approximately 11% of the country’s total insecticide and nematicide market, estimated at $5.5 billion. Over the past five years, this segment has experienced an annual average growth rate of 44%. The recent approval allows the commercialization of Burkholderia-derived products in Brazil, paving the way for future product launches in the country. Bioceres’ bio-control solutions are marketed in Brazil under the Rizobacter brand, as well as other brands used by third-party licensees.
“This approval is a much-awaited milestone for our near-term growth plans in Brazil and, because of the global relevance of this market, for our company in general,” said Federico Trucco, CEO of Bioceres Crop Solutions.
He added that to put things into perspective, “soybean seeds in Brazil are treated today with insecticidal solutions that cost around $15 per bag ($22.5 per hectare), that could be replaced very competitively with this new family of biologicals.”
