New threat to Brazil 's breadbasket : pesky caterpillar

SAO Desiderio, Brazil (Reuters) - Brazilian farmers struggle voracious caterpillar that likely came from Asia , challenging agricultural superpower widely touted skill of tropical agriculture in the same way as it is on the verge of becoming the largest producer of soybeans in the world. Caterpillar , a variety known as Helicoverpa armigera, which thrives in dry heat, was seen for the first time in America on cotton farms in drought-prone western Bahia at the beginning of 2012 , fueling panic among farmers who had no idea what it was. Caterpillar soon on soybean fields thousands of kilometers through the power of their distant flying butterflies , consuming all of the tomatoes on sorghum. While crop losses so far have been limited, Brazil is now on high alert for a major outbreak of pests third country for the last 30 years. Officials stepped port control , farmers are rethinking planting models and the most affected are accused cumbersome bureaucracy of the government for not allowing the import of pesticides , which helped monitor the error in other countries. Most importantly, the track seems to be eating away at the proud claim of Brazil won the craft grows reliable yields in the tropical region , where pests and diseases can spread faster than for other major manufacturers. " When you find Helicoverpa armigera you should act immediately, while they are still small ," said Rudelvi Bombarda, who farms 2,000 hectares (4942 acres) with his brother in San -Desiderio, dusty village center in western Bahia. Bombarda found his first Helicoverpa armigera in the bean plant. He knew the way fattened like a worm creature chewed its way inside the pod out of the reach of chemicals that it was not one of the usual leaf-eating pests in Brazil. " If you wait and send it to the lab , it will be too late ," he said . Bahia, one of Brazil's newest agricultural borders, lost 3 million tons of soybeans and cotton , almost half of its normal production of grain, between caterpillar and drought last year, according to the National Confederation of Agriculture . Nevertheless , Brazil produced 81.5 million tons of soybean crop . It should be noted that the caterpillars have reduced forecasts for even more soybean harvest, which could topple the United States as the world's leading grower this year. But it provided a wake-up call on the risks of error -ridden agriculture in the tropics, especially as more farmland is put into operation. It also shows how the emergence of Brazil as the main granary made ​​it the fastest growing market for biotech companies as Monsanto, who could benefit from start selling its new crawler resistant genetically modified soybean and cotton seeds. Go to galereeFermer Rudelvi Bombarda checks his soybean crops in ... A farmer checks his Rudelvi Bombarda soybean crops for damage caterpillars Barreiras, Bahia state ... " Things have changed " Agricultural research agency Embrapa government determined Helicoverpa armigera was a new species in Brazil in February last year , the year after farmers in Bahia noticed he was different from other pests and seemed immune to pesticides. " Nobody expected species like this, " said Alexander Specht , a researcher whose caterpillar identified microscope in a laboratory outside of Brazil . Small showcase the research center Embrapa Cerrado compares brown moth Helicoverpa armigera with an almost identical Helicoverpa Zea, already known in South America. The government is still studying how to Helicoverpa armigera arrived in Brazil . In the absence of any plausible explanation , rumors of a bioterrorist attack sometimes surface. Most likely , the caterpillar has arrived with a cargo plane or ship from Asia, said Luis Rangel, director of the department of sanitation at the Ministry of Agriculture of Brazil . " With the increasing of the transit of goods , of course, that sooner or later one of these pests will be displayed ," he said in an interview. "The Chinese bring a lot of plants , he could come through this transit . " China is the number one trading partner of Brazil and buys most of its soybeans. In response to the outbreak , the government added organic material detectors at its main ports and airports , technology that Argentina and Chile have already said Rangel. Further measures will be taken in connection with the national intelligence when the World Cup starts in June , he said. EMBRAPA researchers say Brazil is also considering the creation of a database with a pest - identification on its main ports as Helicoverpa armigera without the United States . The government had hoped to beat the pest cycle that has plagued Brazil once every ten years since its launch large-scale commercial agriculture. Go to galereeFermer Bombarda notes their soybean crops in Barr ... Farmer notes Rudelvi Bombarda their soybean crops in Barreiras, Bahia state, February 6, 2014 . Reut ... Whitefly was first in 1990 and then soy mildew 10 years later, and both are still problems . Brazil is also the producer of cocoa in the world's best until the disease Witches Broom not devastated industry in the 1990s . Soybean area in the country has expanded by about 40 percent over the past five years , which means flash Helicoverpa armigera was more significant economic impact , said Rangel. The tendency of farmers to plant soybeans instead of repeatedly rotating crops also made Brazil more vulnerable to pests , he said. To prevent a new outbreak , the government promotes " integrated agriculture " which involves monitoring pests , rotating crops and seed varieties , and using biological control and natural enemies , chemicals as a last resort . This is a completely new approach , according to Rangel. "Helicoverpa changed everything about phytosanitary policy in Brazil," he said. BRAZILIAN bureaucracy "The decision to Helicoverpa is bringing in products to control Helicoverpa - immediately ," said Bombarda, an agronomist from southern Brazil , which lured potential for irrigation in the western border Bahia and working full-time monitors errors on his farm . The state government of Bahia announced that emamectin benzoate , a substance manufactured Swiss cultures chemical manufacturer Syngenta, will be available in March 2013 , shortly after the Embrapa identified a new caterpillar. However, a year later, farmers still do not have access to it. " It turned into an unprecedented bureaucracy ... the government has created a bunch of rules and constraints ," said Brad Celito cotton consultant in Bahia, who traveled to Brazil to discuss Helicoverpa armigera and emamectin benzoate believes would provide the most effective control. Syngenta said the company expected decision from the federal and state authorities in the regulations and permits required for the import of a product that is sold around the world , including the United States and Latin America. Rangel said the bureaucratic hurdles have been developed and will be available emamectin benzoate with special permission urgently. He defended the government's caution , saying that as the top exporter of goods , Brazil should be careful about what pesticides are used , to avoid retaliation from buyers. Dilma Rousseff government of President authorized in 36 other chemical and biological products to combat Helicoverpa armigera, said Rangel. LOSS Syngenta'S, Monsanto GAIN? After two weeks of harvest , Bombarda soybean crop looks healthy . He applied pesticides 10 times , including five layers of the belt, the product he had never used before , made ​​in Germany, Bayer AG. Syngenta still lost out on what would have been able to sell profitable emamectin benzoate in Brazil. But Monsanto, the world's largest seed company , was more fortunate . Over the past 11 years , Monsanto has developed tracked resistant soybean voltage specifically for South America, with an eye on the growing dependence of pesticides in Brazil. "Today, there are basically 12 months of continuous planting and you do not break the vicious pests ," said Renato Carvalho , a specialist in insect control Monsanto in Sao Paulo . " Over the years, with increasing pressure, pests become resistant to insecticides and population growth . " China approved the import of a new seed , Intacta rr2 Pro, in June , and it was first sold in the Brazilian market in July. Seeds accounted for about 4 percent of the soybean acreage this season and yet is resistant to Helicoverpa armigera. The company also sells seeds Bollgard cotton, which helped to control Helicoverpa armigera in Australia. About 90 percent of soybeans planted are genetically modified in Brazil, where international companies , including Syngenta and Dow Agrosciences also sell seeds. More Intacta seeds will be available for next season, although not enough to cover domestic demand , said Monsanto . Seeds Intacta cost 115 reais per hectare , five times more than 22 Brazilian reais farmers paid for the previous technology companies herbicide Roundup Ready. Jose Schreiner , vice president of the National Federation of Agriculture , said Intacta proved resistant to Helicoverpa armigera in his state of Goias , but he hopes to GMO technology is only one of many tools used to fight with a caterpillar . "I think working with biological control , natural enemies , it is the way we should pursue ," said Schreiner , referring to viruses that may be applied to crops to kill caterpillars. " We will not be able to eliminate it, but we should be able to have a good level of control at a lower price . "