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BASF launches fast-acting Altrevin™ fire ant bait insecticide
Studies in almonds and citrus demonstrate Altrevin fire ant bait can kill 90 percent of a fire ant population in just seven days while providing up to eight weeks of control after application.1
"Altrevin fire ant bait is an excellent new tool for almond and citrus growers fighting the many problems fire ants cause,” said Steven Broscious, Technical Market Manager, BASF. “The insecticide has demonstrated the ability to eliminate fire ant activity in as few as seven days, compared to the current market leader, which can take two months to impact the colony.”
Altrevin fire ant bait represents the continuous focus from BASF to bring targeted new tools to the specialty market. Fire ants cause a number of issues for growers, such as reducing yields. According to the University of California, even a mild fire ant infestation can cost an almond grower $102.30 per acre in just 14 days.2 Fire ants also pose a risk to workers; their bite is strong, painful, and, in rare cases, has the power to kill those allergic to the sting.3
Additionally, fire ants damage and clog farming and irrigation equipment, further harming growers’ profits.
The Altrevin fire ant bait delivery system was specifically designed to make it a highly attractive food source to fire ants.
“When worker ants return the bait as food to the colony, it’s passed from ant to ant,” Broscious said. “Most importantly, it’s fed to the queen, causing the colony to stop functioning and die.”
The fast-acting control and five day pre-harvest interval of Altrevin fire ant bait also gives growers the flexibility to time applications when they want, including treatments prior to harvest to protect workers.
The Altrevin fire ant bait label directions allow for use of 1.5 pounds per acre, applied no more than four times per year. The maximum seasonal use rate should be six pounds per acre. For best results, apply Altrevin fire ant bait in the early morning or late afternoon when temperatures are above 60 degrees (fire ants are most active when temperatures are above this temperature). Growers should not apply if the ground is saturated with water or heavy dew, or when there are rains expected within 48 hours.
BASF is committed to bringing innovation to the specialty market with new tools to fight disease, insects and weeds. BASF continuously researches and develops new solutions to help growers increase yield and profits. This season BASF has introduced three new innovative products that will benefit specialty growers across the U.S. – Altrevin fire ant bait, Merivon® fungicide and Zampro® fungicide.
Zampro fungicide provides vegetable, grape and hops growers a new mode of action for managing downy mildew and Phytophthora blight (crown rot).Zampro fungicide is a multi-site preventative fungicide containing a new unique chemistry. Labeled crops include: cucurbits, leaf vegetables, grapes, fruiting and bulb vegetables, potatoes and hops.
Merivon fungicide, the newest fungicide for pome and stone fruit growers, is a premix composed of F500® fungicide—one of the active ingredients in Pristine® fungicide—and Xemium® fungicide, a new active ingredient.
Three years of Merivon fungicide in-field research showed effective control of diseases that annually affect pome and stone fruits, resulting in more marketable fruits. Specialty fruit crops are plagued by annual diseases including scab in apples, powdery mildew and leaf spot in cherries, and blossom blight, shot hole and powdery mildew in peaches. Merivon fungicide will provide a new level of control on these devastating diseases. BASF anticipates receiving additional registrations for Merivon fungicide in grapes and almonds in 2013.
For more information on BASF Crop Protection products, visit http://agproducts.basf.us, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
About the Crop Protection division
With sales of € 4.1 billion in 2011, BASF’s Crop Protection division is a leader in crop protection and a strong partner to the farming industry providing well-established and innovative fungicides, insecticides and herbicides. Farmers use these products and services to improve crop yields and crop quality. Other uses include public health, structural/urban pest control, turf and ornamental plants, vegetation management, and forestry. BASF aims to turn knowledge rapidly into market success. The vision of BASF’s Crop Protection division is to be the world’s leading innovator, optimizing agricultural production, improving nutrition, and thus enhancing the quality of life for a growing world population. Further information can be found on the web at www.agro.basf.com or follow us on twitter: www.twitter.com/basfagro.
BASF - The Chemical Company
BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has more than 16,000 employees in North America, and had sales of $20 billion in 2011. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.us.
BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. We combine economic success, social responsibility and environmental protection. Through science and innovation we enable our customers in almost all industries to meet the current and future needs of society. Our products and system solutions contribute to conserving resources, ensuring healthy food and nutrition and helping to improve the quality of life. We have summed up this contribution in our corporate purpose: We create chemistry for a sustainable future. BASF posted sales of about €73.5 billion in 2011 and had more than 111,000employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.
1 Results according to research conducted by BASF Crop Protection
2Zalom, F, Pickel, C, Bentley, W, et al. "UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines: Almond Ants"
UC ANR 3431 (2009); UC IPM Online. Retrieved 7 Aug 2012 from
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r3300411.html.
3 "Fire Ant Sting Allergy" American College of Allergies, Asthma and Immunology. 2010. Retrieved 7 Aug 2012 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/allergies/Types/insect-sting-allergies/Pages/fire-ant-stings-allergy.aspx
Always read and follow label directions.
Altrevin is a trademark of BASF.
F500, Merivon, Pristine, Xemium and Zampro are registered trademarks of BASF.
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