Global Adoption of Biologicals Accelerates as Marrone Bio’s Grandevo WDG Bioinsecticide is Approved for Use in New Zealand, Chile and on Hemp in the U.S.

DAVIS, Calif., Jan. 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Marrone Bio Innovations (NASDAQ: MBII) (MBI), a global provider of bio-based crop protection and plant health products, today announced that it recently received approval for Grandevo WDG Bioinsecticide for use in New Zealand and Chile. Grandevo WDG and Grandevo CG have also been approved for use on hemp by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“Growers are aggressively seeking alternative crop protection solutions that will serve as safe and effective controls for increasingly problematic pests,” said Kevin Hammill, Chief Commercial Officer of Marrone Bio Innovations. “After several years of extensive field trials in the U.S., we have witnessed the strong performance of how Grandevo WDG Bioinsecticide works on specialty crops. Now growers around the world will be able to experience the performance of Grandevo – from the high-value vineyards of New Zealand’s Marlborough region to Chile’s famous Colchagua Valley.”

In New Zealand, Grandevo WDG will be sold by Nufarm as BioGro and is approved for controlling mealybug on New Zealand’s famous wine grape crop. BioGro is registered and approved by Sustainable Winegrowing NZ (SWNZ), a world-leading sustainability program for growing wine grapes, and is allowed for use on both organic and conventional grape-growing systems from pre-flowering to bunch closure. Additional crops and pests are expected for approval in the coming year.

Grandevo WDG was approved for use in blueberries, grapes, stone fruit, tomatoes, avocados, and onions by the Ministry of Agriculture in Chile (Servicio Agricola y Ganadero - SAG) in November 2020 and is distributed by Anasac, a leading Chilean agriculture inputs provider. Grandevo WDG was among one of the first products of its kind to be approved under SAG’s new regulatory guidance (No. 9074/2018) for biological pesticides, as published in December 2018. Chile is a major exporter of fresh blueberries and grapes and accounts for 60% of all fruit exports within South America.

In the U.S., Grandevo WDG and Grandevo CG were recently approved by the EPA for use on hemp, a high-value crop that has seen rapid growth since its authorization for cultivation in the 2014 U.S. Farm Bill. The approval of the bioinsecticide will provide growers with some much-needed help in the management of problematic pests such as thrips and mites and comes at a time when, due to the highly regulated environment of hemp growing and processing, limited crop protection products have been available. Growers are encouraged to check with their state pesticide regulatory agency or MBI for registration status and can expect state approval in time for the planting of the 2021 hemp crop.