Biopesticides Rebound in a Post-COVID World

How fast biopesticides bounced back from COVID-19-related slowdowns was the biggest surprise over the past year for Mark Trimmer, Managing Partner for the global biologicals research firm DunhamTrimmer.

While the growth rate for the market is slowing in some parts of the world, it is still rising over 10%, compared with 5% for the traditional crop protection market. The biopesticides market was valued at between $4.2 billion and $4.5 billion at the end of 2021 and is expected to climb 14% in 2022, he says. For the rest of this decade, Trimmer estimates biopesticides will increase 12% to 14% globally based on ex-manufacturer revenue.

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“The most important thing in 2020/21 for biopesticides was that I didn’t hear anyone say they went negative or experienced a severe downturn as a result of COVID interruptions,” Trimmer tells CropLife®.

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The market shows signs of maturity in western Europe and parts of the U.S. but continues to grow rapidly in Latin America and Asia, he says, noting that the big drivers remain consistent — consumer demand for fresh produce with reduced chemical load, consumer demand for sustainable production practices, and grower needs for pest resistance management products.

Bioherbicides continue to be what Trimmer calls the holy grail: “The first company that finds a cost-effective, appropriately priced product that performs well is going to carve out a very large niche in market,” he says.

As a result of the early growth stage and the numerous small companies participating in biopesticides, challenges continue to be market access and resources — both people and dollars.

The relatively near future will bring a level of uniqueness above what’s been seen in the space historically, says Chris Judd, global vice president of marketing with Certis Biologicals.

“The depth of research in universities and startups all the way up to the big agrochemical companies, in everything from pheromones to bacteriophages, are going to help the industry develop solutions in addition to bacillus in the next 10 to 15 years,” he says.

Judd acknowledges the strides bio-pesticides have made in formulations, cost, and compatibility, all of which he expects to help drive increased adoption in row crops.

At Certis, row crops are an emerging focus and the company is building a pipeline of bionematicides specifically geared for corn and soybean. It inked a deal with FMC for its bacillus-based biofungicide, which is to be paired with one of FMC’s synthetic chemistries for in-furrow corn applications.

“Consumer awareness of pesticides is certainly driving awareness of residues and the sustainability approach of biologicals, and even regulatory in many countries that are shifting to biologicals,” he explains. “At Certis, we don’t see the future of agriculture as biological or synthetic. We see it as biological and synthetic. When you pair a safe, well-performing synthetic with a biological, you see a benefit oftentimes in your overall crop health and overall yield.”

Supply Chain Opportunities

Adam Litle, chief executive of Sound Agriculture, a Bay Area startup, points to some of the overlooked benefits that alternatives like biopesticides and other biological products offer to traditional pesticides.

“The rise of alternative products like biologicals is helping to diversify away from the focus on a small number of synthetic products in high volume. Whenever you get shocks to the system … you’re actually better off with a slightly more diversified strategy,” Litle says.

Photo Credit AgBiome

Photo Credit: AgBiome

AgBiome, a maker of bio-based pesticides from microbes, also sees opportunity in the supply crunch.

“Most are expecting supply to be a challenge through 2022. For us, it can be a selling opportunity, from the perspective that our product is produced in North America. We don’t have some of the same import constraints. It’s given us an opportunity to highlight where our products fit and will maybe replace a product that is supply constrained,” says Jason Kuhlemeier, Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “We can help build a program that would incorporate (AgBiome’s biofungicide) Howler, and still provide the same level of control and the same results you would expect of a conventional.”

“We’re at a tipping point where biologicals are providing the performance and all the benefits that traditional chemistry has provided,” his colleague, Adam Burnhams, Commercial Team Leader, says.

“We are adopting an extremely science- and performance-driven philosophy in developing our products,” Burnhams explains. “We don’t compare ourselves or aim to be the best biological — we compare ourselves (to conventional chemistry,) and to be the best fungicide in the usages we are targeting.”

The company is expecting double-digit growth on a percentage basis over the next five to seven years.

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