New biopesticide active ingredients, pioneering technologies launched in China in 2021-2023

From 2021 to 2023, many Chinese companies launched biopesticide products in the country. These products play a key role in increasing crop yields, raising farmer' incomes, producing healthy and safe food, protecting the environment, and supporting agriculture to achieve peak carbon emissions. Among these products, there are several containing new active ingredients in China’s market or developed with pioneering technologies. This article explains some representative examples to highlight the features of these products.

Chengdu Newsun Crop Science launched plant growth regulators with pioneering technology

Natural plant growth regulators inhibit or stimulate plant growth and development. In China, natural plant growth regulators are regulated as biochemical pesticides, a category of biopesticides.

From 2021 to 2023, Chengdu Newsun Crop Science (Chengdu Newsun) presented the first naturally derived and industrialized brassinosteroid, 14-hydroxylated brassinosteroid, and launched the first coronatine plant growth regulator.

According to the company, natural brassinosteroid is difficult to extract and industrialize, which led to the production of synthetic substitutes. However, natural brassinosteroid is more effective and safer to use. The company's natural 14-hydroxylated brassinosteroid is certified as a green food production material in China and as an organic product under US standards. This natural product is widely used in the cultivation of most fruit trees, such as kiwi, citrus, apple, and jujube trees to increase fruit set rate and reduce flower or fruit drop. It can also significantly improve the resistance of grain crops to stress, such as extreme temperature, drought, and sanity, throughout their life cycle. Trials at 11 demonstration sites in major wheat production areas showed an average yield increase of 13.28%.

Chengdu Newsun’s coronatine achieves physiological functions, such as regulating plant growth, inhibiting senescence, promoting cell differentiation, increasing chlorophyll content, and enhancing plant resistance to stress. Chengdu Newsun is the world’s first company to industrialize coronatine. In 2021, it built the world's first coronatine fermentation production line in China, which fundamentally solved the problems of low fermentation potency and yield of coronatine, achieving the compound’s industrialized production by improving fermentation and extraction, and lowering production costs, which meet the demand for large-scale production and application promotion.

Baicao Biotech launched new gibberellic acid formulation and obtained nearly ten patents

From 2021 to 2023, Baicao Biotech made progress in the development of its gibberellic acid business. The company’s 40% gibberellic acid soluble powder, used to regulate citrus tree growth, was launched in 2021. Baicao Biotech has adopted a membrane filtration technology that is better at removing impurities and improving the safety of formulations. It also obtained nearly ten patents related to gibberellic acid. Baicao Biotech has partnered with many research institutes and developed several advanced gibberellic acid technical production technologies, which offer advantages such as having a high fermentation titer, safe and environmentally-friendly extracting process, low impurities content, and high level of intelligence. With all these advanced technologies, Baicao Biotech has successfully established a high-purity gibberellic acid technical production line with an annual production capacity of 300 tons, which can meet 50% of global market demand, providing high-quality products to many domestic and overseas customers.

The impact of abiotic stress, such as salinity, extreme temperature, and drought, on crops has become more and more severe, stimulating market demand for gibberellic acid and other broad-spectrum plant growth regulators and increasing the enthusiasm of agrochemical manufacturers and farmers for such products.

Pherobio Technology launched new pheromones against fall armyworm

In 2021, Pherobio Technology launched a sex pheromone product in 2021 to combat fall armyworm for corn. The product contains three active ingredients, Z-7-dodeceny-1 acetate, Z-11-hexadeceny-1 acetate and 9-tetradecen-1-ol,1-acetate, which were registered in China for the first time. The product only attracts fall armyworm without affecting natural enemies and is environmentally-friendly and has a low risk of resistance development. The combined use of the sex pheromone with traps can capture large numbers of the pest, help monitor the spread of fall armyworm to reduce the pest’s population, and control damage below the economic threshold. Fall armyworm is classified as a Class I crop pest in China, and this sex pheromone can effectively inhibit the spread and damage of such pest.

Resoul: The first Chinese company to develop a d-limonene pesticide

In 2022, Resoul launched its d-limonene formulation. The active ingredient is derived from orange peel oil and can control white fly that attack tomato by affecting the wax layer outside the pest’s body, causing gaps between particles in the pest’s wax layer to enlarge and forcing water inside to flow out, leading to death by dehydration. The product degrades rapidly in the environment and will not pollute the environment or induce resistance. Its other advantages include not being affected by light and temperature and having a stable formulation, long shelf life and good in-tank compatibility, It is also safe for pollinators and has a short re-entry interval to ensure the safety of applicators and produce harvesters, and it is less likely to cause phytotoxicity compared to petroleum oil.

Resoul is the first Chinese company to obtain a d-limonene technical and formulation registration. According to the company, its d-limonene technical has an active ingredient content of 93%, which is the highest level in the world, and is the first company to register a 18% d-limonene soluble concentrate in China.

Kingbo Biotech’s Physcion: A pioneering technology developed in China

Physcion, derived from rhubarb root and rhizome that can stimulate plants to produce disease resistance protein, is a pioneering technology developed in China. Physcion is a scientific achievement of a national technology project by Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Kingbo Biotech obtained product registration. In 2015, Kingbo Biotech's physcion won the second prize at the National Science and Technology Progress Award and Gold Invention Patent Award. In 2022, the company’s 0.1% physcion aqueous solution was launched by North China Pharmaceutical Group. The product has been registered for controlling viral diseases that attack tomato. 

The continuous launch of new biopesticides is driving the rapid development of sustainable agriculture in China. Currently, China's annual biopesticide production amount is reported to be some 130,000 tons, with an output value of about 3-billion-yuan, accounting for nearly 10% of total pesticide output value. The goals of the ″Action Plan for Chemical Pesticide Reduction by 2025,″ issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in 2022, are to increase the use of biopesticides and other ″green control″ products and apply them on over 55% major crops and on nearly all advantaged production areas for fruits, vegetables and teas, as well as on ″green agricultural production″ parks. In the future, biopesticides will become an important component of agri-inputs for sustainable crop production in China.

This article is initially published in 2024 China Pesticide Industry Watch magaznie , click to read and downlowd