Vacciplant new bio-fungicide for protecting crops against powdery mildew
UPL, one of the top 5 agricultural solutions companies worldwide, recently launched Vacciplant for protecting crops mainly roses and snow peas against powdery mildew. The colorful event took place at Lake Naivasha Resort; Naivasha.
The Indian based company, UPL, headquartered in Mumbai, globally acquired, early this year, Arysta Life Science. The new entity is now operating is now operations under the UPL brand globally and the regional office for Eastern Africa is located here in Kenya.
Through their mantra “OpenAgTM, ; UPL has managed to set up shop in all corners of the world offering farmers comprehensive innovative solutions, with a complete portfolio aligned to the entire agriculture values chain. UPL is therefore dedicated to create an open agriculture network for the world that feeds sustainable growth for all – No limits, no borders.
The event saw several participants including General Managers, Production Managers, Farm Managers, Plant Pathologist’s, Agronomists, Farmers among others from across the agricultural chain in the country attend the launch. Through structured presentations and highly interactive discussions, the UPL team provided background information on powdery mildew, knowledge on their biology and life cycle. The damages and symptoms caused by powdery mildew were also pointed out.
Vacciplant is a bio- fungicide containing Laminarin as the active ingredient which controls powdery mildew. Laminarin is a natural ingredient extracted from Laminaria digitata a seaweed found in the oceans and seas.
According to Nicolas Crete, the Marketing Manager Expert in Biological Solutions at UPL, Laminarin is recognized by the plant as a signal of attack that triggers defense mechanism of the plant,putting the plant in a defensive state before the real attack occurs.
“Vacciplant is a bio-fungicide which is to be applied to the crops before attack of powdery mildew. It boosts the natural defense mechanisms of the plant. It activates the three main pathways of defense which include; reinforcement of the walls, production of phytoalexins and production of PR proteins. The systemic effect of the plant defenses allows protection of newly formed organs,” said Nicolas Crete.
Vacciplant is. foliar applied at the rate of 2 Litres of product per hectare, mixed with the right volume of water for a good coverage. A higher volume of water should be used where you have dense crop canopies.
Ms. Hannah Kibiru, Product Development Specialist at UPL stated that Vacciplant should be applied at the early stages of crop development. It should be applied preventively for three consecutive applications at 7-10 day intervals. “We have done several trials on various varieties of roses in several areas in Kenya; including Mt Kenya, Naivasha, Thika, and Nakuru, regions. The results we got are consistent and has been effective in protecting roses against powdery mildew, “she said.
As Laminarin acts on various pathways through the plant and not directly on the pathogen, it doesn’t add selective pressure on the pathogen strains and probability of resistance appearing is greatly reduced.
“The positive response from the Kenyan agricultural sector as seen in this overwhelming attendance and active participation, provides strong evidence of the interest of fighting pests and diseases,” said Innocent Arunda, Marketing and Sales floriculture and horticulture Kenya. Vacciplant is classified as class IV product and is now available for the Floriculture and Export vegetable segment at Amiran Kenya.
The product has been registered in Europe and successfully launched in France, Belgium and Switzerland. The success of the Kenyan launch highlights the resolve and commitment by UPL in fulfilling growers need through innovative crop protection and life science brands.
