Caterpillar pressure drives increase in insecticide applications, reports Kynetec

The increasing threat posed by various species of caterpillars in Brazilian soybean fields has led to a significant rise in the average number of insecticide applications, according to a recent study by consultancy firm Kynetec, which was shared exclusively with AgroPages.

Due to the severity of these pest attacks across different soybean-producing regions, the potential treated area (PAT) with specific insecticides grew by 46% over the past three seasons, reaching over 99 million hectares in the 2023/2024 cycle compared to 2020-2021. During the same period, the soybean insecticide market expanded from U$423 million to $705 million in market value, marking a 67% increase.

In the "Mapitobapa" region (Center/North of Brazil), the treated area saw an even more dramatic rise of 116% from the 2020-2021 season to 2023-2024. In this region alone, insecticide sales reached $144 million in the last soybean season, representing an increase of nearly $100 million in just three seasons. Specifically in the Brazilian states of Piauí and Pará, Kynetec highlighted a striking increase in sprayings, which rose from approximately 2.5 applications per hectare to six and five applications per hectare, respectively.

"Caterpillars are increasingly becoming a systemic problem. They damage corn, soybean crops and the corn second crop. They have also infested other crops such as sorghum, millet, sunflower, and beans," summarized Pedro Marcellino, Marketing Director at AgBiTech Brazil. He said managing these pests with chemical inputs and biotechnologies is "becoming less efficient, and control is becoming more complex."

Daniel Dias Rosa, an agronomist and partner at Agrotech consultancy, emphasized that chemical compounds such as benzoate, chlorpyrifos, chlorantraniliprole, and all diamides are showing a marked reduction in effectiveness against soybean caterpillars. 

"Today, relying solely on chemicals is no longer viable; integrated pest management is essential. One recommendation is to incorporate viruses, such as caterpillar-specific baculoviruses," said Rosa, who holds a master's degree in phytopathology and a doctorate in plant protection. 

"We don't like the word resistance, but with the real decline in chemical performance, studies indicate that various caterpillars are indeed developing resistance," Rosa added.

Pedro Marcellino of AgBiTech noted that the Australia-America-based company, which has been active in Brazil for eight seasons, has seen continuous growth in sales of its baculovirus portfolio for caterpillar management.

With a current average market share of 42%, Marcellino said the company increased its product transactions by 26% in the 2023-2024 cycle. "Baculovirus-based insecticides enhance the effects of chemical molecules against which certain pests have already developed resistance, boosting chemical performance from around 50% to nearly 85% effectiveness in caterpillar control," Marcellino explained.

"There are tangible results and significant improvements in the cost-benefit ratio for producers," concluded the Marketing Director of AgBiTech Brazil, a company leading the Brazilian market in baculovirus-based biological insecticides.

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)