Certis Europe expands Eradicoat usage
Early use in protected cucumbers and tomatoes in the UK has now been extended to include other protected crops such as leafy salads, ornamentals and there has been a great uptake in tunnel-grown strawberries and raspberries. Efficacy data for maltodextrin shows that it can give 85 – 95% control with a single application when used correctly and has no residues. In addition, growers can introduce biological control agents such as predatory mites and parasites soon after the crop has dried following application.
It is clear that the product is gaining ground in both tunnel-grown crops and outdoor situations, where growers have formerly been reluctant to use such biorational products. With the loss of insecticides on the horizon and an increased pressure from retailers with respect to residue levels, growers have realised the potential benefits of Eradicoat as part of an Integrated Pest Management system and are exploring its use in a wider range of production systems. Perceptions are good and use on outdoor vegetables, especially, for example, baby leaf salads, has gradually started to pick up.
Eradicoat is one of the oldest biorational products, originally introduced in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It was first registered with a full data package in the UK in 2013 as a plant protection product and since then has continued to be developed in the areas of formulation, efficacy and usage. Further developments are ongoing and Certis sees tremendous potential for this product, not only in European markets but also in North, West and South Africa as well as East Asia, where environmental conditions are ideally suited to getting the best from this product and where future approvals are anticipated to help growers deliver Integrated Pest Management programmes.
For more information:
Certis Europe
www.certiseurope.com