BASF Steps Up the War on Resistant Weeds
September 30, 2019 As a company, the past year or so for BASF has been quite memorable. Although the company itself wasn’t directly involved in many of the mergers and consolidations that gripped the crop protection/seed supplier community, BASF was nonetheless a beneficiary of these moves. The German-based company was able to purchase various seed product lines from Bayer. In addition, BASF acquired the old Bayer headquarters facility and neighboring grounds located in Research Triangle Park, NC.
Scott Kay, BASF Agricultural Solutions
And it was at this renamed facility where BASF recently held its Global Media Event. Here, various company executives outlined the many new products and programs BASF is planning to introduce to the agricultural marketplace between the end of 2019 and on into 2025.
Of course, one of the primary areas of focus with many of these products from BASF ties back to addressing the growing herbicide-resistant weed problem. In fact, according to Scott Kay, Vice President of U.S. Crop, BASF Agricultural Solutions, research from Stratus Ag shows that nearly 75% of growers nationwide are dealing with glyphosate-resistant weeds in their crop fields. It’s for this reason that the company is introducing a new weed control initiative called Operation Weed Eradication.
Loading ...In practice, Operation Weed Eradication will take a balanced approach of utilizing cultural practices such as conventional tillage, chemical control such as rotating chemistries, and eradication diligence such as hand weeding to help growers eradicate troublesome on-farm weeds.
“Our approach to on-farm education will uproot problem weeds and help secure a sustainable farming future that builds a successful legacy for seasons and generations to come,” said Kay. “Weed eradication will be a personalized, tailored journey for each grower with different start and end points.”
In the coming months, Kay promises that BASF will assemble a coalition of industry leaders to help develop a specific eradication customer offering and launch an educational initiative to support Operation Weed Eradication.
“And we want ag retailers to help play a role in this effort,” he added. “As the trusted advisors to the growers, ag retailers are in a perfect position to advise their growers on what agronomic practices they can use to completely eradicate resistant weeds populations from their fields.”
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