Bioinputs: understand what they are, the most important ones, their efficiency in agriculture, and more!
Currently, bioinputs market accounts for more than R$1 billion in Brazil.
Aiming to further stimulate this segment, the government has developed plans to increase the use of biological control.
This initiative is directly linked to greater environmental safety and increased productivity at a low cost.
With that in mind, we have selected important information about bioinputs and how they can help you achieve high productivity levels on your farm. Check it out!
What are Bioinputs?
Bioinputs are nothing more than biological inputs of plant, microbial and animal origin that act on production systems.
There are several types of bioinputs, but the most important ones derive from microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses and fungi.
They are strong allies when it comes to increasing farm profitability and optimizing the use of chemical inputs, such as insecticides, fungicides, and nematicides.
They are widely used in agriculture, from seed treatment applications to pesticides produced from beneficial microorganisms to control pests and diseases.
In general, bioinputs aim to improve quality and promote sustainable farming practices.
Therefore, learning about bioinput alternatives is crucial to reduce costs, increase productivity, and produce more in a sustainable way.
Check out the most important bioinputs available!
Get to know the most important bioinputs
A wide variety of bioinputs covers agricultural production systems. For example:
- Inoculants
BIOTROP has a line of highly efficient inoculants that can be applied to different crops, such as soybeans, beans, corn, wheat and pasture.
Important lines for soybeans contain Bradyrhizobium japonicum and Azospirillum brasilense in their composition.
- Biofungicides
Products derived from Trichoderma harzianum are highly efficient when it comes to controlling white mold, damping off, root rot, and sudden death syndrome.
In addition to increasing farming productivity considerably and, consequently, profitability
- Bioinsecticides
Bioinsecticides have shown excellent results when it comes to integrated pest management practices, especially the ones derived from Azadiractina.
It is efficient controlling whiteflies and powdery mildew.
- Bionematicide:
Opt for bionematicides that are highly efficient and do not have to be refrigerated (at least 2 years of shelf life), reducing its vulnerability to environmental conditions.
Products containing Bacillus subtilis are a great option.
Other bioinput alternatives available on the market are as follows:
- Vegetable extracts;
- Plant growth promoters;
- Biofertilizers;
- Products for plant and animal nutrition;
- Biological pesticides;
- Phytotherapeutic products, among others.
Regarding postharvest strategies, bioinputs can also be used to keep vegetables fresh to avoid postharvest losses.
Bioinput efficiency: higher profitability and higher productivity
Bioinputs move around R$1 billion a year in Brazil, with an annual growth rate of more than 10%
Moreover, considering the new federal government incentive programs, significant increases are expected in the coming years.
These products have become crucial in Brazilian agriculture and they are synonymous with high efficiency at a low cost.
Currently, the most important bioinputs used in Brazilian agriculture are nitrogen-fixing bacteria, which convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammoniacal nitrogen (which can be used by plants).
Soybean is the crop that benefits the most from this bioinput. Growers purchase it at a low cost (95% lower than mineral nitrogen) and do not need to spend money on mineral nitrogen (high cost)
It is estimated that the annual savings from the use of biological nitrogen fixation by soybean growers is around US$13 billion a year.
In addition to soybean, due to the development of new inoculants, other crops have shown increased productivity at a low cost by using Azospirillum brasilense, such as off-season corn (6.8%), wheat (8.9%) and pasture (15%).
For sugarcane, the use of bioinputs in biological control of pests, such as the sugarcane borer, can help reduce production costs by up to 15% compared with the costs of conventional systems.
Inoculants based on Pseudomonas fluorescens and Azospirillum brasilense have shown excellent performances in corn fields, increasing the bioavailability of nutrients throughout the season, and ensuring increases in productivity of up to 5%.
On the other hand, products based on Bacillus pumillus have increased the productivity of corn and soybean by 2.7% and 6%, respectively.
Another important tool for biological management practices are products based on Bacillus subtilis, B. amyloliquefaciens and B. pumilus, as they accelerate the development of crops at initial stages, ensuring increases in productivity of 4.7% for soybean and up to 26.5% for vegetable crops.
Conclusion
In this article, we discussed what bioinputs are and learned about their importance for the Brazilian market.
In addition to perspectives for the future and the role of the government in this segment.
We defined bioinputs as biological products of plant, microbial and animal origin that act on production systems.
The main characteristics of these products are related to environmental safety, ensuring increases in productivity at a low cost.
Some bioinputs have already been consolidated in Brazil and they have led to savings of billions of ‘reais’ to the country.
However, many other biological products have gained importance in the market lately due to their efficiency.
Do you use bioinputs on your farm? Which bioinputs have been used? Do you have any questions? We would like to read your comment below!
