Introduction
The role of Biological Products in Agriculture and more specifically, in Crop Protection and Plant Nutrition is known to most people involved in the industries but it was not always that way. Microbial organisms have been studied for a long time, but their massive utilization has not happened until this century. As an example, there are hardly any organizations participating in Crop Protection industry that are not involved in Biological Products, whether they develop their own, acquiring someone else’s products, or at least are planning to enter that part of the industry.
Examples or successful or less successful acquisitions of companies that were involved with biological products are too numerous for this blog to mention them all, but the most notable result of the acquisitions, is that there are now hardly any small or medium-sized companies that focus on biological products that are left on the market as independent. Many participants in the industry explain that trend by the drive for innovation, diversification, environmental policies or even to find better Integrated Pest Management or Resistance Management tools. The truth is, however, that the biggest driver for such trend was a necessity.
Early Drivers: From Agrochemicals to Biologicals
The Decline of Conventional Pesticides
By the 1990s, the so-called “golden era” of synthetic agrochemicals was winding down. Regulatory agencies worldwide began imposing stricter rules, leading to the cancellation or expensive re-registration of many chemical pesticides. As companies faced higher compliance costs and dwindling pipelines of new active ingredients, Research and Development budgets were slashed, and the search for alternatives intensified.
High Barrier to Entry of Biotechnology and Seed
Some early alternatives were tried in the field of plant biotechnology or genetically engineered crops and seed as a vehicle for the new technology. However, developing transgenic seeds required enormous financial resources and specialized personnel—
luxuries only a handful of agrochemical giants could afford. Smaller and mid-size organizations simply could not compete in biotechnology Research and Development, leaving a gap in the market. But even if the technologies were accessible, they still would not provide a complete alternative to agrochemicals at the time.
The Rise of Microbial Solutions
The next alternative was obvious: Biological Products. Researchers had been investigating beneficial microbes in agriculture for decades, but few products achieved commercial traction. By the second decade of this century every large corporation in Crop Protection participated in Biocontrol industry by both acquiring other companies that focused on biological products but also investing into their own Research and Development of new biological products.
It has been about 15 – 20 years since the trend started and by now, it has largely affected every participant in Crop Protection industry. What are the results? How did biological products change Crop Protection and Plant Nutrition industries? Did biological products deliver on all the expectations and investment spent on them? It is hard to give a definite answer because the answer will depend on who is asked.
History and Trends in the Biologicals Sector
Over the past two decades, large agrochemical companies have acquired most of the small and mid-size firms dedicated exclusively to biological products. Though some observers credit this trend to innovation, diversification, or environmental policy, the true catalyst was necessity: traditional chemistries were losing ground, and biologicals represented one of the few viable growth avenues.
By now, so much investment has been put into efforts to find a new “super microbe,” but the truth is that we are still using the same microorganisms that were there before the large investment came from the big corporations. Most biological products in Crop Protection are still based on a few genus (Bacillus spp., Beauveria spp., Isaria spp., Metarhizium spp., and Trichoderma spp.) and even activity of those have not been improved over the years by utilizing their newly found strains.
The real improvement of biological products does not come from investing into high throughput screening but from the investment into manufacturing (formulations, including increased shelf life and resilience in the field) and increase in their competitiveness comes
from increasing efficiency of the Supply Chain and delivery to the market, including effective relationships with customers such as distributors, retailers and farmers.
Impact of Biological Products on Crop Protection and Plant Nutrition Industries
Not a Replacement for Agrochemicals
Some early proponents predicted that biological products would completely replace synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. In hindsight, that claim was overly optimistic—and it has largely been abandoned. Biologicals and conventional chemistries each play complementary roles:
- Synthetic chemicals still offer high and relatively predictable efficacy
- Biologicals excel in niches such as resistance management, compatibility with integrated pest management, and fitting into organic or low-residue programs
Growing Customer Awareness
Fifteen to twenty years on, farmers and agronomists are far more familiar with biologicals than they were in the 2000s. Widespread field trials, extension efforts, and success stories have helped set realistic expectations: biologicals rarely match the instantaneous, consistent technical results of synthetic pesticides, but they can reduce overall chemical use, help manage resistant pests, and improve soil and plant health over time.
Where does it all go, what is the future of biological products in Crop Protection and Plant Nutrition industries? There have been a few decades since the whole awareness and investment into biological products has started to happen on a larger scale. It is more than enough time to see that the trends listed above are not going to change any time soon. At the same time, the number of customers who are aware of the role of biological products in agriculture has risen tremendously. With the rise of number of potential customers, the awareness of potential unrealistic expectations and understanding benefits and limitations of biological products has also risen.
Over the few decades, biological products in agriculture are not considered very innovative anymore, and very few customers still expect to see the same level of efficacy with biological products as compared to agrochemicals. Yet, most customers see how they play significant role in both Crop Protection and Plant Nutrition industries.
It is quite possible that in the next few decades, biological products will become largely generic in the sense that their profit margins will decrease but the volume will continue to increase. Their future use might become similar to the current use of old chemistries such as copper, sulfur, NPK or urea-based fertilizers. Everyone will be aware of their usefulness, although not knowing what exactly they might contribute to their individual fields. From that standpoint, we believe that biological products will continue to play a vital role in Crop Protection and Plant Nutrition industries, but their role and expectations will become slightly different than now. We still see the field of biological products as a valuable place for any company to invest in and become part of the unstoppable trend in agriculture.