Fluency Agent to Reduce Bee Risk at Planting
By Amanda Brpdhagen, Farms.com
Bayer CropScience announced Wednesday, that it has created a brand-new product to be used when planting neonicotinoid-treated corn and soybean seeds.
As of this month, the product is commercially available to growers.
The news release said that flow lubricants are required by Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency during the 2014 planting season with neonicotinoid-treated seeds.
Called Fluency Agent, it aims to reduce dust from treated seeds during the planting process.
“The introduction of Fluency Agent is our latest contribution to improve honey bee health in Canada,” Paul Thiel, VP Innovation and Public Affairs, Bayer CropScience said in a release.
Fluency Agent was tested in large-scale field studies in spring 2012 across North America, including 13,000 acres Ontario and Quebec, according to the news release.
The company said that a 400g container of the product treats about 50 bags of seed, is enough seed to plant 125 acres of corn. It costs $23.99 per container.
Bayer has a division of its company devoted to bee health research.