At the 29th International Horticultural Congress which takes place from August 17 to 22 in Brisbane, Australia, Bayer CropScience is showcasing its latest innovations and novel approaches for sustainable horticulture production. Under the theme ‘Innovating Together for Sustainable Horticulture’ experts from the company present recent product novelties and new solutions that underline the role of Bayer CropScience as the innovation leader in its field with the aim of supporting the horticultural industry’s efforts to produce premium-quality fruits and vegetables in a sustainable way.

Bayer CropScience offers customized, integrated crop solutions based on high-quality vegetable seeds, effective chemical and biological crop protection, complementary services and advice in environmental protection, efficiency and safety. “Bayer CropScience’s contribution to sustainable agriculture is at the core of our business supporting our customers with innovative solutions, proactive stewardship and partnerships,” explains Klaus Koetting, Head of Crop Strategy and Portfolio Management for Fruits, Vegetables and Insecticides. “By working closely with our partners, we aim to help bring healthy and affordable nutrition to all and to live our group mission: Science For A Better Life.”

Product innovations and integrated crop management approaches to address the increasing demand for sustainable solutions 

Among the key innovations presented at the congress are the nematicide Velum™/ Verango™ for advanced root health management as well as the biological products Requiem™ and Serenade™ that offer new options to manage the quality requirements of the food value chain in integrated crop management approaches. Further highlights are the new insecticide Sivanto™ against sucking pests, the new herbicide Alion™/Becano™ for integrated weed management programs, and the novel fungicide Luna™ that prolongs the shelf-life of harvested produce.

Bayer CropScience’s broad-spectrum fungicide Luna™ extends the vitality of produce beyond the harvest, thus giving it a prolonged shelf-life, better storability and increased marketability. It is effective on many crops including apples, stone fruits, potatoes, tomatoes and table grapes. 

The recently launched product Velum™/Verango™ is a breakthrough nematicide with a novel mode of action for efficient root protection and sustainable soil pest management. In field trials, the product significantly reduced nematode damage and increased yields and quality in a broad range of crops. Compared to existing chemical solutions, Velum™/Verango™ has a favorable safety and environmental profile and offers long-lasting control at very low application rates. 

The biological products Serenade™ and Requiem™ are new, powerful tools for efficient production management of integrated cropping systems. Serenade™ is effective against a range of aggressive fungal and bacterial pathogens as well as against several soil diseases. Requiem™ effectively controls sucking insect pests such as whiteflies and thrips. Both products enhance Integrated Pest Management (IPM) systems and help to secure grower and customer satisfaction. When used in combination or rotation with chemicals, biological products provide new tools in resistance management. Another important benefit of these biological products is their short pre-harvest and re-entry intervals providing high flexibility on application timing for the grower. 

Sivanto™ is the latest addition to the insecticide portfolio of Bayer CropScience. This innovative product for the control of major sucking pests like aphids, whiteflies, and other key insects has an outstanding safety profile and a high compatibility with many beneficial insects. Due to its selectivity Sivanto™ can be used in IPM programs in fruit and vegetable crops together with biologicals and beneficials. Thanks to its activity at all stages of insect development and its systemic properties, Sivanto™ provides high flexibility in application type and timing and is an effective resistance management tool for sucking pest control.

Offering expertise and personalized specialist support to the grower and throughout the food value chain

To assist horticulture growers on a daily basis, Bayer CropScience can call upon a global network of 7,400 agronomists around the world to provide expertise in production practices. This way, the company helps ensure that quality standards in fruit and vegetables production remain high and are further improved. Dedicated teams with a deep understanding of specific regional growing conditions provide tailored agronomic support and training on safe use and good agricultural practices to local growers and support them in acquiring specialist know-how and skills to better serve the needs of the value chain.

Ensuring that growers produce high-quality crops is the first step to successfully entering the fresh-food market place. “By forming Food Chain Partnerships, we foster closer links between growers, traders, processors and retailers and share our agronomic knowledge and value chain expertise,” says Silke Friebe, Head of Food Chain Management at Bayer CropScience. “Our core competencies lie in developing and supplying integrated crop solutions that are locally adapted and tailored to the individual needs of our customers. The common goal is to increase productivity sustainably and to improve crop quality.” Bayer CropScience can build on 10 years of experience in Food Chain Partnerships in 30 countries spanning 40 crops, primarily fruit and vegetables.

The Bayer Sustainability Radar is an innovative service tool that is used in Food Chain Partnership projects with growers worldwide. It allows users to measure and monitor the sustainability performance of existing grower practices against a set of economic, environmental and social criteria. Direct interactions with growers and partners promote a continuous improvement of production practices on and the beyond farm towards greater sustainability.

The International Horticultural Congress – promoting research and fostering knowledge exchange

The International Horticultural Congress takes place every four years and provides a unique opportunity for the horticultural research community, horticultural producers, value chain participants and agribusinesses from around the globe to share information and uncover vital new knowledge. The organizers aim to promote and encourage research in horticulture and facilitate global scientific cooperation and knowledge transfer. The year 2014 marks 150 years since the first International Horticulture Congress was held in 1864 in Brussels. This year’s congress is hosted under the theme ‘Horticulture – sustaining lives, livelihoods and landscapes’, and offers an extensive program of plenary sessions, symposia, workshops and field tours to highlight the unique potential of horticulture to impact broadly on the key issues of modern society – health, prosperity and an improved environment.