Agrium informed customers that it is increasing potash prices across all zones in the U.S. by $15/st, effective April 15, 2016. The company offered no other details on what the new postings are in each U.S. pricing zone.
The rapid pace of consolidation continues at the regional cooperative level, with members voting recently to support two separate mergers in Iowa.
Farmers’ Cooperative Elevator Company (FCEC) of Kingsley, Iowa, voted on March 31 to merge with First Cooperative Association (FCA) of Cherokee, Iowa. The merger, which was supported by 77 percent of FCEC’s voting members, will take effect July 1 under the First Cooperative Association name.
“First Co-op is very pleased to add the members, assets, and employees of Farmers’ Co-op Kingsley into First Co-op’s overall operation and to continue the expansion and growth in the Kingsley area,” said Jim Carlson, general manager of FCA.
The combined company will have 165 employees and will operate in 21 communities in eight counties in northwestern Iowa, with projected annual sales of $400 million. Carlson will continue as general manager of the combined co-op, and two FCEC board members will join the FCA board as a result of the merger.
The voting results were announced on April 4, with both co-ops noting that the results were the culmination of “months of study and negotiation.” FCEC operates just one location at Kingsley, and all employees will be retained.
“We are very pleased with the total number of members that voted and that nearly eight out of every ten members agreed with the board’s decision to pursue unification with First Co-op,” said FCEC general manager Chris Pedersen.
FCA was formed in 1997 from the unification of four co-ops – Farmers Cooperative Assoc. in Marathon, Agland Co-op in Alta, Farmers Cooperative in Aurelia, and Farmers Cooperative in Cleghorn. The company currently operates agronomy, grain, energy, and feed divisions from 20 locations in northwestern Iowa, with 152 full-time employees and more than 40 part-time employees.
FCA’s agronomy operation offers precision ag services, corn and soybean seed, and custom application of anhydrous ammonia, liquid and dry fertilizer, ag lime, and crop protection chemicals.
In another recent merger vote, members of Farmers Cooperative Co. (FCC) in Afton, Iowa, agreed to combine with United Farmers Mercantile Cooperative (UFMC) in Red Oak, Iowa. The merger will take effect Sept. 1 under the United Farmers Cooperative name, with more than 200 employees and projected annual sales of $300 million.
Member votes were tallied on March 18, with 79 percent of voting FCC members and 85 percent of UFMC members supporting the merger. John Pruss, current general manager of UFMC, will serve as general manager of the combined company, with Jim Schendt, current general manager of FCC, serving as assistant manager. The new board of directors will be evenly represented by FCC and UFMC members.
In an earlier letter to FCC members, Schendt said the co-ops had identified $1.5 million in potential savings and/or margin enhancements that the merger would generate through better asset utilization and increased efficiencies and volumes related to agronomy, grain arbitrage, and expense cutting. Schendt assured members that the merger would not result in cuts to staff, however. “Employees from both cooperatives will be retained,” he said. “A potential unification will create more opportunities for them, as well as future employees.”
FCC operates from Iowa locations at Afton, Arispe, Creston, Diagonal, Indianola, Macksburg, Mount Ayr, Osceola, and Shenandoah, and one facility in Elwood, Kan. The company’s agronomy locations are at Afton, Macksburg, Mount Ayr, and Osceoloa, and include a new 5,200-ton dry fertilizer facility at Mt. Ayr that went into operation the second week of November 2015. FCC also sells anhydrous ammonia, UAN, liquid starters and foliar nutrient products, and a range of micronutrient and specialty fertilizers.
UFMC operates grain, agronomy, feed, energy, and retail divisions from Iowa locations at Red Oak, Villisca, Stanton, Corning, Farragut, Shenandoah, and Essex. The company’s agronomy business offers seed, fertilizer, crop protection products, custom application, and precision ag services from locations at Red Oak, Villisca, Farragut, Shenandoah, and Essex. UFMC also has convenience stores in Red Oak and Corning, a NAPA store and tire/service center in Villisca, and a full-service Country Store and lumberyard in Red Oak.
U.S. Gulf: Elevated water conditions persisted in the Gulf last week, prompting reduced tow sizes and increased transit times, sources said. Towing restrictions were projected to remain in place through April 17.
The gauge at Baton Rouge read 31.88 feet on April 13, above the 30-foot action stage. Nation Weather Service (NWS) predictions called for levels to begin declining around April 16. A flood warning remained in effect in the Red River Landing area.
Natchez levels showed 44.69 feet and falling slowly on April 13, higher than the 38-foot action stage. Forecasters expected water levels to recede to 42.5 feet on April 18.
The Corps put Algiers Lock delays as high as 18 hours last week, with 18 vessels in line on April 13. Ongoing Harvey Lock repairs sent traffic detouring through Algiers Lock, swelling Algiers wait times. Harvey is slated to return to service on April 30.
Bayou Sorrel Lock wait times were reported up to 22 hours. High-water conditions pushed the differential between the lock’s flood-side and land-side gauges higher than three feet for the week, necessitating safety restrictions. Twelve boats were queued at Bayou Sorrel on April 13.
Port Allen Lock waits were called 2-5 hours for the week, and Industrial Lock navigation was reported up to 21 hours with 22 vessels awaiting service. Lock inspections and diving operations were scheduled to close Industrial Lock during daylight hours on April 18.
The Corps has yet to announce concrete details regarding Industrial Lock’s 120-day shutdown scheduled for fall. Early plans called for dredging the Baptiste Collette channel to use as an alternate route, but an unexpected lack of funds may necessitate the scuttling of other dredge projects in order to finance the work. Should that strategy prove untenable, the Corps may elect to push the project back to 2017, sources said. Shippers noted possible closure dates of Aug. 1 through Nov. 29 should the project proceed in 2016.
Transit clearance beneath the West Port Arthur Bridge is reduced by a minimum three feet through April 30, shippers said, thanks to maintenance and painting work underway at the bridge. High water closed the Charenton, East Calumet, and West Calumet floodgates for the week.
High-water conditions triggered Brazos Lock transit restrictions, pushing wait times into the 2-4 hour range. Additionally, an intermittent shutdown warning on Monday-through-Friday daylight navigation was in effect through April 29. Repairs were in progress at both the lock’s east and west floodgates.
Lower Mississippi River: High-water conditions were reported on the Lower Mississippi, ranging from Cairo to the Gulf of Mexico. Transit restrictions were in effect for southbound tows, capping barges at 75 percent of normal. Shippers expected the restrictions to be lifted April 17.
The Vicksburg gauge sank below the 35-foot action stage on April 13, reading 34.53 feet and falling on April 14. A flood warning remained in effect for the area through April 19. Memphis levels were 12.81 feet and rising on April 14, below the previous week’s 18.35-foot mark.
Upper Mississippi River: Transit restrictions were in place at Miles 20-44 for the week, stemming from an April 6 incident where a tow vessel struck the Thebes Railroad Bridge, sinking two barges.
Southbound tows were limited to 25 barges in daylight-only navigation, while northbound vessels were allowed 28 barges during daylight hours and 35 barges on overnight transit. Shippers said crews were working to raise the sunken barges on April 14, and warned the operations could trigger intermittent full-river closures.
The Corps called Lock 27 delays 1-2 hours for the week, with Lock 20 adding an additional 1-3 hours for transit. Mel Price Lock wait times clocked in at just over an hour.
NWS data put St. Louis river levels at 18.33 feet and falling on April 14, slightly above the prior week’s 18.23 feet. Forecasts called for the gauge to recede to 9.2 feet by April 27.
Illinois River: Shippers said the Illinois River’s T.J. O’Brien Lock was offline during daylight hours of April 12. No waiting was reported at the lock on April 14.
Lockport Lock experienced delays of about an hour, and Brandon Road Lock saw wait times of up to six hours for the week. Marseilles Lock and Dam quoted navigation delays of 1-2 hours, and Starved Rock Lock also saw waits of 1-2 hours. Dams were down at both the Peoria and LaGrange Locks, allowing boats to transit without locking.
Ohio River: Shippers quoted wait times at Emsworth Lock in the 1-2 hour range, while Dashields Lock navigation required up to five hours for the week. Montgomery Lock and Dam passage fell in the 1-3 hour range, and R.C. Byrd Lock reported delays of 1-2 hours.
Locks 52 and 53 lowered wickets again last week, allowing vessels to pass without locking. Nevertheless, congestion pushed Lock 52 delays to 1-2 hours.
The Cincinnati river gauge showed levels at 31.89 feet and rising on April 13. Forecasts expected the gauge to peak at 36 feet on April 15, shy of the 40-foot action stage, before reversing course and touching the 30.2-foot mark on April 18.
Depths at Cairo read 28.0 feet and rising on April 13. The NWS projected levels of 31.5 feet on April 17, just below the area’s 32-foot action stage.
The auxiliary chamber at New Cumberland Lock, shut down since April 4, is scheduled to remain offline through May 27. The Corps will reopen the unit on April 16-17, April 30 through May 1, and May 15-16 to pass queued vessels.
The Montgomery Lock main chamber is scheduled to go offline May 16 through June 10, with major delays expected, sources said. The chamber will open temporarily to clear waiting traffic on May 28-29 and June 4-5.
Greenup Lock will see its main chamber closed April 15 through Sept. 30, leading shippers to warn of substantial delays. Greenup’s auxiliary unit was unavailable on April 14 while repairs were performed.
Louisville passage will be unavailable at Mile 602-606 on April 22-23 due to Thunder Over Louisville events.
The main chamber at Emsworth Lock is scheduled to shut down July 5 through Aug. 10, reopening for the weekends of July 16-17 and July 30-31. The site’s auxiliary chamber will not be available for transit during the closure, making delays likely.
Maintenance on the Tennessee River’s Chickamauga Lock will force sporadic 10-11 hour shutdowns through May 12, shippers said. The work has been underway since March 28.
The Monongahela River’s Braddock Lock and Dam river chamber remained unavailable last week. Equipment failure has rendered the chamber unusable in 2016, forcing transit through the site’s land chamber instead.
On the Cumberland River, diving operations were expected to prompt waits of up to four hours at Cheatham Lock on April 18-21.
Arkansas River: Maintenance operations will shut down Webbers Falls Lock in the upstream direction on May 16-22, shippers said. The lock is scheduled to close downstream Aug. 24 through Sept. 11.
U.S. Gulf: Prompt granular barges continued to be firm last week, with the range called $232-$255/st FOB. Loaded barges were reported as high as $245-$255/st FOB, with those further out at the low end of the range. First-half May was called $218-$225/st FOB, with all May quoted at $218/st FOB.
Prills were still reported to be in short supply for prompt material, with that market continuing to be called $240/st FOB. However, May was being quoted at $220/st FOB.
Eastern Cornbelt: Granular urea remained at $275-$295/st FOB in the Eastern Cornbelt, with the low out of spot river locations and the upper numbers inland.
Western Cornbelt: Granular urea remained in a broad range at $270-$300/st FOB in the Western Cornbelt, with the low reported in the St. Louis, Mo., market and the upper end in Iowa. One source said he expects brisk urea movement on rowcrop ground over the next 7-10 days if weather conditions cooperate.
California: The granular urea market was pegged at $320-$340/st FOB port terminals in California, with the upper end reflecting a $10/st increase from last report.
Pacific Northwest: The granular urea market was steady at $330-$340/st FOB port terminals in the Pacific Northwest, with the rail-DEL market unchanged at $348-$360/st in the region.
Western Canada: Granular urea was quoted at $500-$510/mt DEL in Western Canada, down $5/mt from last report. One source said tons contracted for May delivery were higher at $525/mt DEL.
India: The announcement by MMTC that it would close a urea tender April 25 stirred up the global urea market. Sources said attendees at an industry conference in Beijing indicated the move would have little impact on the current prices out of China.
India does not need urea to start the upcoming application season. Sources said the country currently has stockpiles of about 1 million tons on hand. The move to buy product now seems more along the lines of setting up a buying pattern that will help keep the monthly import numbers to 1 million tons.
India will need to import 7-8 million tons before the end of the year, according to government estimates. Sources said buying needs to start now so the first set of purchases will arrive in May. Each month after that, an average of 1 million tons will have to be imported to satisfy expected demand.
Sources said demand for 2016 application is expected to be higher than the previous two years. The Indian weather service reported this week that the annual monsoon rains are expected to be back to normal after two years of drought. Local media have given the prediction wide coverage, leaving sources with the impression that the government is hoping to boost agriculture output this year.
If MMTC was hoping to get a break in pricing, sources said they will be disappointed. Chinese producers reportedly have no incentive to drop their prices for material purchased in April and shipped by May 23. The domestic Chinese market continues to be strong, offering producers better netbacks than offshore sales.
China: Producers remain happy with the prices they are getting in the domestic market, and apparently have yet to focus on the international market.
Export prices are pegged at just under $220/mt FOB for prills and about $215/mt FOB for granular. At the same time, sources said producers could get a $235/mt FOB port equivalent on sales to the domestic market.
Domestic buying is expected to remain strong until the end of the month. By the second week of May, sources said, the last of the major in-country buying will have reduced to a trickle.
The urea tender call by MMTC/India, said one trader, helped put a floor under the Chinese prices. By calling for shipment by May 23, the Indians kept their buying demand time within the just-waning Chinese domestic market. Sources said this confluence of lessening domestic demand and strengthening international demand will most likely leave prices stable for a while.
Major industry players attending a conference in Beijing said the announcement by MMTC caused a minor stir among participants. A consensus developed that prices would most likely not go any lower than the current level.
One trader noted that so far no one is carrying a long position on Chinese product. Trading houses are expected to spend the next few days talking with Chinese producers about pricing ideas and then make their offers to MMTC. Only after the awards are made are traders and producers expected to seal the deal.
Middle East: At least one Arab producer is expected to directly offer tons in the MMTC/India tender. Iranian producers will go through their regular sources to participate in the tender. The difference is that the Arab producers are expected to put in a high price, while the Iranians are expected to follow China’s price lead.
Until the tender results are posted, sources say the public prices from the region have not changed. The new numbers when the tender is announced should closely reflect the Chinese product price plus the transportation cost difference between the two locations, said one trader.
Egyptian production is getting back in full force. The last price paid out of Egypt was pegged at $235/mt FOB. Sources expect to see an uptick in pricing even as more product comes online.
The return of natural gas supplies allowed Helwan to kick into full gear April 11. Alexfert started up April 7 and was nearing production at 70 percent of its rated capacity. MOPCO 1 and 2 finished their two-week maintenance shutdown and should be fully up and running next week. At that time, MOPCO 3 will shut down for its maintenance check-up.
Renewed gas supplies also allowed OCI/EFC to slowly start up this week.
Latin America: Guatemalan company Incofe has called a tender tor 25,000 mt of prilled urea and 20,000 mt of granular urea for second-half May shipment. The product is reportedly for multiple deliveries in Central America.
A recent purchase of 20,000 mt of prills for a May 10 delivery to Guatemala and Honduras reportedly came in at $210/mt CFR. The product is from the Baltics.
Southeast Asia: Thailand buyers are reportedly buoyed by weather predictions that the rains expected next month will be on time and back to normal after two years of severe water shortages.
Sellers are reportedly ready to try to inch the price up on expectations of stronger demand. Sources said, however, that the Thais are expected to remain true to form and drive hard bargains for lower prices.
The Indonesian government has apparently told producers to allocate all prilled production for domestic use. The move came after weather predictions called for a strong rainy season.
Uralkali reported a net profit of $184 million for full-year 2015 after suffering a $631 million net loss the previous year. The return to the black was achieved despite a 12 percent drop in revenue, to $3.12 billion from $3.56 billion. The company cited weaker demand and lower potash prices in key markets, combined with a reduction in its production capacity, as impacting 2015’s revenues.
Full-year EBITDA was up 7 percent year-on-year, to $1.91 billion from $1.78 billion in 2014, while the EBITDA margin increased to 72 percent from 64 percent.
“Despite the increase in the EBITDA margin, supported by a drop in cash COGs by almost a third in U.S. dollar terms, foreign exchange losses and fair value losses on derivative financial instruments had a negative impact on the company’s net profit in 2015,” Uralkali said. Increased financing costs due to foreign exchange losses and losses from the revaluation of derivative financial instruments contributed to 2014’s net loss of $631 million.
The company produced 6 percent less potassium chloride last year, with output falling to 11.4 million mt from 12.1 million mt a year ago. Potassium chloride sales fell 9 percent to 11.2 million mt, down from 12.3 million mt. Export sales were 12 percent lower in 2015 at 9.2 million mt, down from 10.4 million mt a year earlier. The company put its global market share last year at 18 percent.
“The significant potash prices’ decline, triggered by weak demand and intense competition among suppliers, along with lower production volumes on the back of the Solikamsk accident, negatively influenced Uralkali’s sales volumes in 2015,” Uralkali CEO Dmitry Osipov said in the company’s earnings conference call April 11. But he said that rouble depreciation over the last year and growth in the export FCA potash price to $245/mt, which was up 5 percent on the back of significant shrinkage in transportation expenses in dollar terms, resulted in the 7 percent EBITDA growth last year.
Uralkali expects a weaker global market for potash this year, anticipating global demand to range between 58-60 million mt in 2016, down from its previous estimate of 59-61 million mt due to the delayed China contract, said Vladislav Lyan, head of the Uralkali Trading unit. He believes 2016 potash volumes will be heavily impacted by the timing and outcome of the Chinese potash contract. He said potash demand upside this year is also limited because of 2015 end-year excessive inventories, although he believes that demand will be more robust as 2016 progresses.
Uralkali expects the new contract with China to still come within the first half of the current year, Lyan said, adding that contractual commitments to China will “definitely take off a certain pressure from the spot market.” However, he declined to comment on the likely contract price level.
“China’s demand for potash, we believe, has begun to gradually increase, driven by NPK producers’ orders, and we also estimate the country’s potash inventory levels have dropped to approximately 4.4 million mt compared with 6 million mt at the beginning of 2016,” said Lyan.
Nevertheless, Lyan expects the elevated end-year inventories to lead to a decline in the country’s import volumes this year compared with the 9.4 million mt imported in 2015 based on China customs data, anticipating total Chinese demand in 2016 will be in the range of 13.5 to 14 million mt. Chinese deliveries in 2015 were at a record level of approximately 17 million mt, he said.
In India, Uralkali estimates full-year 2015 potash demand to have declined to 3.9 million mt, down from 4.5 million mt the previous year. Lyan said the situation is getting better with the expectation of a good monsoon season, which should lead to better potash consumption despite a largely unchanged potash subsidy for 2016/17 and a possible reduction in the maximum retail price. However, owing to the high carryover potash stocks, potash imports this year are expected to be below 2015’s level, he said, with Uralkali estimating imports of some 3.9 million mt.
In Southeast Asia markets, most of the palm oil plantations, as usual, are waiting for a clear sign from the Chinese contract, but they expect a slight improvement in potash demand this year, supported by heavy farm-out margins and a more moderated and slower pace of U.S. dollar strengthening against local currencies, according to Lyan. Uralkali estimates the region imported 9.3 million mt of potash last year, a 9 percent drop over 2014.
Uralkali expects a moderate increase in Latin American demand this year, driven by favorable crop economics, after an estimated 3-4 percent downturn to 11.3 million mt in 2015. But it warned the upside to potash demand may be limited due to lower economic growth in the region, with total regional potash demand expected to range between 11.3-11.5 million mt.
In Brazil, Lyan said there has been a clear sign of stabilization in terms of demand and prices supported by improved credit availability and a more stable Brazilian real relative to the U.S. dollar. “We saw a dramatic change in Brazilian market demand during March and April with a full order book with our local distributors and demand in May should stay active, as that month is usually an active starting point for Brazil.”
Uralkali anticipates improved potash demand in North America this year, with lower nutrient levels after an extremely weak 2015 being the catalyst, and Lyan believes this should become evident in the second quarter. The potash producer estimates North American demand contracted by 23-24 percent year-on-year in 2015, to approximately 8 million mt.
Uralkali CEO Dmitry Osipov put Uralkali’s production guidance in the range of 10.3-11.3 million mt of potash, depending on market conditions.
Company executives declined to comment on whether a de-listing of Uralkali from the Moscow Stock Exchange was likely; that decision is in the hands of Urakali’s board of directors. As a result of a recent share buyback program, the company’s “free float” has fallen below 9 percent, which is below the “free float” requirement of the Level 1 quotation list –the top tier – on the MSE.
Junior potash company Western Potash Corp., Vancouver, announced the resignations of President Bill Xue, Senior Vice President, Corporate Development Patrick Power, and Executive Vice President Limin (Linda) Sun from the board of directors, effective April 5. However, each of them will remain with the company in their current executive positions. The board said its intention was to reduce the proportion of executive directors, thereby optimizing its composition and efficiency. Most recently, the company was focusing on plans to build a 146,000 mt/y solution-based pilot project at its Milestone Potash Project in Saskatchewan (GM Oct. 5, 2015).
Oslo—Yara International ASA said April 11 that it will invest approximately US$275 million in expanding and modernizing its Rio Grande plant, which is strategically located in southern Brazil, a key region in the country’s growing agricultural industry. Set for completion in 2020, Yara said the investment will create one of the biggest and most modern fertilizer sites in the Americas. “This expansion represents another step in our Brazil growth strategy, further establishing our position in Brazil as a long-term industry player, committed to developing and investing in Brazilian agribusiness,” said Svein Tore Holsether, Yara president and CEO. “The project is possible thanks to the acquisition of Bunge Fertilizantes in 2013, creating further consolidation synergies through optimization, automation, and de-bottlenecking of the combined assets.” The expansion project will double the site’s current 800,000 mt annual fertilizer production and blending capacity and provide customers with increased access to Yara’s premium products, thereby reducing reliance on finished fertilizer imports. It will also improve health, environment, safety, and quality performance, including substantially lower emissions than required by legislation. The scope includes new warehouses, new acidulation and granulation lines, fully automated blending and bagging equipment for small (50 kg) and big (1 mt) bags, a boiler for steam production, a wastewater treatment plant, and rest areas for truck drivers. The plant already operates its own recently modernized and expanded pier, which is connected to the railway network and the industrial complex. The facility is expected to create over a thousand direct and a further three-to-four-thousand indirect employment opportunities, boosting the region’s economy. The investment follows approximately US$1.5 billion of expansions and acquisitions carried out by Yara in Brazil in recent years, including the Bunge (2013) and Galvani (2014) acquisitions, and the recent construction of modern blending and bagging terminals in Sumaré and Porto Alegre.
Rio de Janeiro—Just over a week after Vale SA was said to be looking to offload a stake in its fertilizer unit (GM April 8, p. 14), the Brazilian mining giant is reported to have joined forces with U.S. private equity firm Apollo Global Management to bid for Anglo American plc’s Brazilian phosphates business. Industry sources believe Vale could benefit from synergies due to of the Anglo phosphates assets being in proximity to some of its own assets. The Anglo phosphates operation includes a phosphate mine at Ouvidor in Goiás state and two downstream phosphate complexes at Catalão, also in Goiás state, and at Cubatão in São Paulo state (GM Oct. 26, 2015). Vale had not responded to Green Markets’ enquiries by press time. Both The Mosaic Co. – according to media reports, also believed to be eyeing the business – and Apollo declined to comment. Anglo put up for sale its niobium and phosphates business in December as part of an accelerated and more radical restructuring to redefine the focus of the group’s asset portfolio and cut debt (GM Dec. 14, 2015). In mid-February, Anglo said it already had received expressions of interest from 16 companies for the unit and was expecting to draw up a shortlist by the end of the month. Media reports say binding bids are expected in a few weeks, but it is unclear how many companies are expected to launch a bid. A spokesperson for Anglo said the sale is advancing according to plan, but he could not comment on the details of the sale process. In mid-February, Anglo CEO Mark Cutifani said a sale of the Brazil-based unit might happen within two-to-three months (GM Feb. 19, p. 13). The company earlier indicated it is looking to sell the niobium and phosphates business in a single transaction. South32 Ltd., the aluminium, coal, and magnesium producer spun out of BHP Billiton Ltd., at least one Chinese state company, and other global private equity firms, including the mining-focused X2 Resources, were also earlier reported to be interested in Anglo’s niobium and phosphate business (GM Jan. 15, p. 13). Israel Chemicals Ltd. also is said to be a possible contender.
Toronto—Vive Crop Protection has launched two products that it says can blend easily with liquid fertilizer, which it says is a first in the industry. It says its AZteroid™ fungicide and Bifender™ insecticide are worry-free, convenient, and easy-to-use products that mix uniformly with liquid fertilizers. Both utilize the patented technology of Allosperse to deliver the chemical precisely into the liquid fertilizer. It uses polymer “shuttles” to carry the active ingredient to where it needs to go – the shuttles control how the chemical interacts with soil, foliage, fertilizers, and other factors. Vive said the technology can be readily applied across multiple crops and/or active ingredients, thereby creating products that customers prefer but don’t currently have. AZteroid contains azoxystrobin and provides broad-spectrum control for a variety of seed and seedling diseases in corn, soybean, potatoes, cotton, peanuts, and several other crops. “Use of an at-plant fungicide increases seedling growth and vigor, and leads to faster, more uniform emergence,” said Vive Crop Protection Vice President of Business Development, NAFTA, Tony Zatylny. “In the past, applying fungicide and starter fertilizer simultaneously has relied on complex and expensive equipment solutions, ultimately leading to inconsistent field performance. AZteroid is the first fungicide designed for direct mixing with liquid fertilizer right in the spray tank for a worry-free, consistent, high-performing application.” Bifender contains bifenthrin and provides broad-spectrum control of many serious insect pests dwelling at or below the soil surface for corn, soybean, cotton, potatoes, and peanuts. Vive said it can also be tank-mixed with AZteroid by growers who want to simultaneously control seedling disease and soilborne insect pests.
Marysville, Ohio—Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. said April 12 that its Ortho brand of insect control products for lawn and garden use would immediately begin to transition away from the use of neonicotinoid-based pesticides for outdoor use and announced a new partnership with the Pollinator Stewardship Council to help educate homeowners on the safe and appropriate use of pesticides. Earlier this spring, Ortho expanded its selection of non-neonic based garden solutions. Building on this process, the brand will eliminate the use of neonic active ingredients Imidacloprid, Clothianidin, and Dinotefuran by 2017. “This decision comes after careful consideration regarding the range of possible threats to honey bees and other pollinators,” said Tim Martin, general manager of the Ortho brand. “While agencies in the United States are still evaluating the overall impact of neonics on pollinator populations, it’s time for Ortho to move on. As the category leader, it is our responsibility to provide consumers with effective solutions that they know are safe for their family and the environment when used as directed. We encourage other companies and brands in the consumer pest control category to follow our lead.” Scotts/Ortho has announced a multi-year partnership with the Pollinator Stewardship Council, one of the nation’s leading pollinator advocacy organizations and supporter of more than 550 beekeepers throughout the U.S. Scotts has previously collaborated with the Council to promote pollinator habitat, and the expanded partnership will develop homeowner education related to the responsible use of pesticides where pollinators can be found. In January, Scotts also announced the Pollinator Promise, a program that will result in the creation of 75 pollinator gardens in cities throughout the U.S. this year. The program is part of the company’s GRO1000 Initiative, which has resulted in the creation of 790 community gardens thus far.
