Crop science firm Syngenta said it is planning to launch several new products in India this year, including Tymirium, a nematicide that also functions as a fungicide for multiple crops. “India is a very important market for us. It is a growing market. Also, it is a market where new technologies can be used,” Steven Hawkins, president, Syngenta Crop Protection, told FE.
He has, however, called for more predictable regulatory policy in India, saying it would make it easier for it to bring several products into the country for the benefit of small farmers. “Unpredictability and regulatory policy is the problem. More predictable policy on crop protection technologies is beneficial and would attract investments on a consistent basis,” Hawkins said.
Syngenta backs biostimulant
Hawkins’ comments follows agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan‘s recent direction to the Indian Council for Agricultural Research to test the effectiveness of biostimulants in the ‘interests of farmers‘.
Chouhan has said that “biostimulants will only be approved if scientifically validated and action will be taken against suspicious biostimulant manufacturers,”
Only those biostimulants proven beneficial will be approved, Chouhan had stated and added that around 8,000 products remained in circulation. “After I enforced stricter checks, the number has now come down to approximately 650,” the minister said.
Syngenta, a leading player in bio-stimulants, had acquired Valagro, a biologicals company in 2020. Stating that farmers need a lot of agronomic support for bio-stimulants usage, Hawkins said “If the government does bring in a regulatory framework for bio-stimulants we will support that approach”.
He added: “We do understand that there are a lot of less effective products in the market because there has not been any regulatory framework on bio-stimulants until now”.
Sources said bio-stimulants were neither in the fertilizer control order (FCO) or insecticides categories for a long time. Currently the biostimulants have been put under FCO and sale of these stimulants have been stopped from June 16.
New product in pipeline
Last year, Syngenta launched fungicide Adepidyn, following the previous year’s launch of broad-spectrum insecticide Plinazolin. Along with Tymirium, these three products are global blockbusters worth more than a $ billion each.
“We are thrilled that we are able to launch them here in India,” Hawkins said, adding that additional products are in the pipeline for registration in coming years.
“All the product development will be gradually available to farmers as in the past it was dependent on the regulatory system and there is no reason why its should not be,” according the senior official of the company.
The global agri-major continues to invest in digital agriculture solutions, with more than 3 million acres already on its ‘Cropwise Artificial Intelligence platform’. The company plans to deepen integration of this technology with local farming practices to enhance yields for small farmers.