The Brazilian market for nematocides has grown tenfold in 8 years

According to a recent study by Kynetec Consulting, the Brazilian market for nematocides grew tenfold after eight harvest seasons. These inputs sold 1.6 billion Brazilian Reais (about 2.09 billion yuan) in the 2021-2022 cycle, compared to 160 million Brazilian Reais (about 210 million yuan) in the 2014-2015 cycle.

According to Kynetec, soya accounted for 52 per cent (R $806 million) of the nematocidal business in the last harvest, followed by sugar cane with 23 per cent (R $363 million). Corn, cotton, coffee, potatoes and 14 other crops surveyed accounted for 25% of the nematocide market share, or about 400 million Brazilian reais (about 520 million yuan).

In an assessment focused on target areas for treatment, the coverage of nematocides increased from 1.5 million hectares to 21 million hectares since the study. Soybeans had the highest percentage of potential treated area (PAT) in the last harvest: 64%, or about 13.4 million hectares. Corn and cotton came second, each accounting for 13 percent, or about 2.73 million hectares (a total of 5.46 million hectares). Sugarcane accounts for 1.27 million ha, equivalent to 6% of PAT.

With regard to the adoption of nematocidal products by farmers, nematocidal products were used in 99 per cent of cotton growing areas by 2022, up from 9 per cent in 2015. The proportion increased from 2% to 24% in soyabeans, from 6% to 13% in sugarcane and from 1% to 13% in maize. The report notes that nematocides are used even on smaller crops. By 2022, 76% of carrots, 67% of garlic and 39% of potatoes were covered by at least one nematocidal product application. Nematodes seriously damage plant roots, and faced with potential losses, growers choose to invest in preventive management.

Biological nematocides

Another piece of data from the FarmTrak survey shows that biological nematocides are at the top of the market. Such products sold R $1.2 billion, equivalent to 75 percent of the total nematocides market, compared with 25 percent (R $395 million) for chemical nematocides.

Chemical tools simultaneously play an important role in management, including the application of chemical pesticides, crop rotation and the use of pest-resistant varieties.

Kynetec experts also noted that they surveyed the incidence of nematodes in all agricultural areas of the country, with farmers from the Cerrado standing out and leading the way in purchasing pest control products. The region brings in 82% of the nematocides market, or R $1.3 billion (about 1.7 billion yuan). Nearly half (617 million reais) are concentrated in Mato Grosso.