Oklahoma Farm Report’s Maci Carter caught up with BASF’s technical marketing manager Josh Putman to learn about the company’s accomplishments this year.
In February 2024, BASF’s Surtain herbicide received its EPA registration. Surtain herbicide is the first of its kind and a truly new early-season solution for fighting resistant weeds in Corn. Producers can now apply a group 14 herbicide pre- through early post-emergence and get excellent crop safety and residual weed control.
Then, over the summer, BASF launched the Surtain Demo Experience to get the product into the hands of growers and retailers, so they could become confident in the new technology of the herbicide: solid encapsulation.
“Weed resistance continues to be a problem, especially throughout much of the Midwest,” Putman said. “The goal of Surtain was to bring a new novel mode of action being a PPO inhibiting chemistry, in combination with Zidua SC, a well-known group 15 herbicide, and bring that premix in to really control palmer amaranth, waterhemp, and other problematic weeds throughout much of the United States. It is a good way to start fields off clean early in the season or apply it all the way up through V3 corn, which is really important for many of our growers.”
In October, Liberty ULTRA herbicide received its EPA registration, and a growing number of states have begun to approve its use. It is the first trait-enabled, resolved isomeric postemergence herbicide. It effectively controls grasses and tough broadleaf weeds like waterhemp, palmer amaranth, giant ragweed, and kochia in glufosinate-tolerant soybeans, cotton, canola, and corn.
“Liberty ULTRA is extremely exciting for us,” Putman said. “It is what we are considering the next generation of glufosinate, and it really stems from two different concepts. The Liberty-loc formulation helps with the retention and dispersion of the herbicide on the leaf, ultimately getting three times more herbicide into that plant compared to generic glufosinates on the market.
“The other aspect is the Glu-L Technology which means that the isomers are more active making the product effective at a 25% lower use rate.”
Beyond weed control, BASF’s available tools include a complete portfolio of overall pest management. Nurizma insecticide is a new product in the lineup to control resistant populations of corn root worms. Nurizma insecticide’s active ingredient, broflanilide is the first group-30 active ingredient registered and sold as an in-furrow insecticide.
Veltyma fungicide contains a unique active ingredient, Revysol®, the first and only isopropanol azole. Revysol fungicide delivers broader, stronger, longer disease control. The unique molecular structure provides stronger binding, rainfast performance, and excellent efficacy. The unique isopropanol azole molecule has a reinforced isopropanol link — giving it the ability to flex to various conformations and fight a broad spectrum of disease and resistant strains.
“In 2024, diseases came in late and really hit us hard,” Putman described. “In some areas of the ‘I’ states, we were seeing greater than 30-bushel yield losses, so offering the complete program to help manage all pests is very important going forward.”
BASF continues to innovate from its already comprehensive seed portfolio through a complete crop protection portfolio with the goal of helping growers be as successful as possible. More information can be found by reaching out to local BASF representatives which can be found on the website.
