BASF has two new fungicides registered by the Pest Management Regulatory Agency.
Sphaerex controls cereal diseases at heading. Veltyma provides broad spectrum control against key leaf diseases on multiple crops with the new active ingredient Revysol.
Sphaerex provides broad spectrum protection against a wide range of diseases at heading on wheat, barley, oats, rye and triticale. Fusarium head blight losses in Canada total $300 million annually.
Veltyma provides control against key leaf diseases on wheat and potatoes, including Group 3 resistant biotypes.
Sphaerex fungicide combines prothioconazole and metconazole. It provides management of FHB and reduces deoxynivalenol (DON). While FHB may not be a problem one year, it can return with increased incidence and severity the next year, which is why it’s important to manage the risk as soon as possible.
According to BASF’s Trevor Letta, Canada loses up to $300 million annually. With cereals representing Canada’s largest acreage, growers need fast-acting solutions to control leaf diseases, he said.
Veltyma contains a new active ingredient called Revysol, said Letta in an interview. It’s the first and only isopropanol-azole link in a Group 3 fungicide.
“The unique trait is that it bonds to the disease site 100 times stronger than conventional Group 3 fungicides. It bonds more powerfully than conventional triazole fungicides, including where target site mutations have developed. It’s a highly effective tool to manage resistances.”
Most fungicides have a narrow binding site when contacting a disease. One end of the Veltyma link actually rotates so the isopropanol-azole molecule actually hooks around the fungal site, and that’s what gives it one hundred times better adhesion.
“Veltyma is unique because it covers such a wide range of crop families including corn, potatoes, wheat and soybeans. It has our Group 3 mefentrifluconazole plus our Group 11 pyraclostrobin. Most of our fungicide foundation work has been built around pyraclostrobin.”
Letta said in western Canada, Veltyma will be used on potatoes and corn, which is a good fit because most potato growers have corn in their rotation. By addressing two different types of crops, Veltyma will address two different types of diseases. The same strategy on the other crops will reduce disease pressure over the long term.
Veltyma covers a range of diseases, including some disease strains that have become resistant to other Group 3 fungicides.
According to BASF, Veltyma provides broad spectrum control against key leaf diseases in corn including northern corn leaf blight, tar spot, common rust, eyespot and gray leaf spot. In potatoes, it provides protection against key foliar diseases in potatoes such as early blight, black dot and brown spot. In wheat it provides control against septoria leaf blotch, leaf rust, stripe rust and tan spot.
The company said Veltyma provides multiple modes of systemic residual activity while delivering increased growth efficiency and greater yield potential. It was originally designed for European cereal growers.
Both new fungicides are expected to be available for the 2022 growing season.
