With the prospect of more pesticides being phased out from use in South African agriculture, the field of bioproducts will become an indispensable part of farming, believes the South African Bioproducts Organisation.
Bioproducts are defined as naturally occurring living organisms (bacteria, fungi, nematodes, insects, plants and so forth) and extracts of living organisms, used to control pests and diseases, enhance growth of and protect plants and animals in indoor and outdoor environments.
The South African Bioproducts Organisation, now in its tenth year and representing the bioproducts industry, has been instrumental in supporting agricultural bioproducts and biostimulants to local growers. SABO aims to be the first port of call for bioproduct-related queries.
“SABO was established by the then Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), various universities and research institutions as well as the bioproduct industry to improve the standards of bioproducts in the market in order to protect both the market and the end users,” says Alison Levesley, SABO general manager (right).
“The purpose of SABO is to develop the agricultural bioproduct industry in South Africa and to support the regulation of the activities of participants in accordance with high ethical and science-based standards.”
Industry requires biological and chemical control
Over the past decade they have seen a growing receptiveness to the proposition of biological products. There often is a misconception that bioproducts are only for use in organic production while, in fact, Donvae Hooker, head of SABO’s marketing working group points out, a combination of biocontrol and chemical control probably offers growers the best chances of success.
“It does require a mind shift to now release a new organism that’s alive, albeit it fungal or microbial or a parasitic wasp, into your orchard where you want it to adapt and become part of your orchard’s ecosystem,” Donvae says. “It can be quite daunting for a grower to take the step away from the chemical route where you see immediate results to biocontrol which works over a longer time frame.”
Increasingly farmers are opting to lower their chemical use, she observes, either because of resistance building up, or because certain active ingredients like chlorpyrifos are being phased out, or because of chemical and fertilizer costs that have increased over the past few years.
“Whilst biosolutions may appear more costly on the price list, one needs to consider the environmental and safety benefits they offer. In the long term, pursuing a proactive, preventative and natural approach can save growers money as they pursue more environmentally sustainable solutions,” she adds.
Donvae Hooker, chair of SABO's marketing committee, at a recent SABO outreach event
Growing body of success stories
There is increasing pressure on growers to adopt a softer more sustainable approach and it is vital that growers are able to make informed decisions, by having access to necessary information on new technology products, and SABO is striving to provide support in this regard.
The organization is keen to share the success stories over the past ten years, Alison says, and it does so through their newsletters.
Thrips, the bane of many crops like blueberries and avocados, is a tiny insect, difficult to reach and coat with chemical spray: enter a minute predatory pirate bug in the Orius genus which excels at searching and destroying thrips – an example of an interaction which, if repeating itself every season, offers growers a way off the carousel of chemicals.
On citrus, success with the biocontrol of false codling moth (FCM; right) has been attained using an integrated approach including viruses, mating disruption and Beauveria bassiana.
“This is a perfect example of how biologicals need to be used in an integrated programme to complement each other,” Alison says, noting that it is important to remember that biological organisms favour a specific stage in the pest’s life cycle and are not effective against all the life stages of the pest.
Natural pest suppression in the soil
When talking about biocontrol agents, the discussion would be incomplete without reference to nematodes and specifically entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) used worldwide for natural pest suppression in the soil. These are not the better known plant parasitic nematodes that damage plant roots.
Entomopathogenic nematodes are organisms that physically hunt for the pest which makes them excellent at managing pests hiding in cryptic environments. The population numbers of beneficial and plant parasitic nematodes in soil are used to indicate soil health. By determining the percentage of the different nematode groups in the soil one can make recommendations on ways to restore the balance in the soil.
Sheila Storey, standing at right, addressing participants on beneficial nematodes; she set up Nemlab, the first private nematode diagnostics laboratory in South Africa
Updated regulation needed for holistic inclusion
Bioproducts are regulated under the Agricultural Remedy Act 36 of 1947, a legislation that needs to expand to include the concept of bioproducts to which post-spraying residue testing, for example, does not apply.
SABO’s regulatory working groups participate in the development and revision of this and other regulatory guidelines.
Currently, the organization is also developing a training course on Microbials, Macrobials, Plant Extracts, Semio-Chemicals and Inoculants to be incorporated into the basic crop protection training modules offered by Croplife South Africa, the agrochemical industry body’s local chapter.
Alison says that SABO aims to continue to collaborate with Fertasa, the Fertiliser Association of South Africa, and Croplife to speak with one voice.
SABO's latest newsletter can be read here.
For more information:
Alison Levesley
South African Bioproducts Organisation
Tel: +27 86 104 5261
Email: [email protected]
https://sabo.org.za/