Sustainable crop protection product BOOSTER-Mag

BOOSTER-Mag is a safe, low cost, environmentally sustainable and easy-to-apply foliar spray that can improve productivity and natural resistance to pests and diseases. We are pleased to have recently executed a fourth Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) for BOOSTER-Mag with another multinational crop protection company.

The MTAs represent a considerable investment of time and money by the counter-parties, following independent assessments of efficacy testing of BOOSTER-Mag over the past three years. Counter-party trials are currently in progress, which typically run for a minimum of two seasons, on specific crop, disease, and geographic region.

It is anticipated that Commercial licence arrangements for sales and marketing by crop, disease, and geographic region of BOOSTER-Mag will follow successful trials.

Calix continues to build the BOOSTER-Mag efficacy dossier necessary to achieve registration as a plant protection product in Australia.

A series of field tomato trials were completed over the 18/19 Australian summer to further quantify the effect of BOOSTER-Mag treatment on crop health and productivity.

The results show that relative to untreated controls, BOOSTER-Mag treatment coincided with statistically significant suppression for a range of damaging pests:

• Helicoverpa spp. (cotton bollworm): Victorian and Queensland trials yielded consistent and positive data with treatment in both trials reducing fruit damage at harvest by between 60 to 77%.

• Aleyrodidae (white Fly): Victorian trials indicate BOOSTER-Mag treatment coincided with a 65% reduction in pest pressure.

• Tetranychus urticae (two spotted mite). Queensland trials indicate BOOSTER-Mag treatment suppressed motiles (adults & nymphs) to greater extent than the grower standard chemical treatment.