Disposal of empty fungicide packs can be cut

WHEAT growers concerned about the impact of impending waste legislation can cut the number of some empty fungicide packs they need to dispose of this season by almost a third.

This will be possible thanks to a new co-formulated fungicide containing leading strobilurin Amistar plus anti-resistance partner fungicide Bravo - which avoids growers having to tank mix separate packs of the two products together.

According to Paul Varney, the Syngenta cereal campaign manager responsible for the new product, the new legislation is due to come into force later this year, when it will effectively prevent current practices by farmers of disposing of empty containers on-farm.

Instead, they will have to arrange for a waste disposal contractor to collect them, he says. But that will inevitably carry a cost.

"Increasingly, farmers are being advised to add Bravo to their strobilurin + triazole tank mixes as a way of combating the build up of Septoria tritici resistance.

"However by using Amistar Opti - the new, combined formulation of Amistar + Bravo - rather than tank mixing the two products together, growers can cut the number of empty containers they need to dispose of by almost 30%."

Developed in direct response to the appearance of Septoria tritici resistance to strobilurins, a total of five packs of Amistar Opti will be required to treat 20 ha of winter wheat at the Syngenta recommended rate of 1.25l/ha. That compares with a total of seven packs to treat 20 ha using an equivalent Amistar + Bravo tank mix. "This saving is on top of the benefit of having fewer packs to handle and wash out during busy sprayer fill-up periods," Mr Varney stresses, "which is something farmers themselves tell us they want.

"Additionally, co-formulations can be a big boon where parcels of wheat need spraying which are remote from the main farm - since they can reduce the number of packs which have to be transported."

Like other strobilurins, Mr Varney says Amistar Opti is designed for mixing with a triazole for curative disease control. However, the presence of Bravo in Amistar Opti not only plays a key role in controlling strobilurin-resistant Septoria tritici, but also in protecting the triazole partner against sensitivity shifts of the disease.

"Also, as a co-formulation it will be more cost-effective than simply tank mixing Amistar and Bravo together," he continues. "And in resistance trial plots, Amistar Opti has given an extra 2.5 t/ha yield compared against a straight strobilurin."