Asia

Paraquat system saves soil in the Philippines

In the Philippines, more successful results from a project using paraquat to control weeds and prevent soil erosion have been announced. Since 2005, researchers from several universities and other organisations have been collaborating to study approaches to reducing the serious threat posed by soil erosion to food production and the environment.
Professor Gil Magsino from the University of the Philippines presented the results and conclusions from the Sagip-Lupa project’s 4th Annual Report at the University of Benguet recently.
Prof. Magsino noted that an annual loss of 2 – 4 cm of topsoil from fields in the Philippines has become commonplace, but with the imperative of achieving sufficient levels of food production this cannot be sustained.

Benefits of paraquat-based agronomy

Less soil lost
Higher yields
Lower input costs
Time savings

Plants and soil organic matter are key to reducing soil erosion. Living or dead mulches of plants covering the soil resist the impact of rain, and roots and organic matter bind soil particles together. Traditional methods of weed control such as hand hoeing and plowing remove unwanted plant material, ie weeds, and disturb the soil, encouraging erosion.
However, using an agronomy system based on paraquat means that weeds are only removed when necessary to protect yields.

Paraquat sales in Thailand approved to continue

In September 2008, after an evaluation by the Thai Toxicology Evaluation Committee, paraquat was approved for continued sale in Thailand and scheduled to enter the new re-registration process.
As of May 2009, the final approval of the re-registration procedure by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives is still pending, but paraquat has been included in the first stage of the review program which is expected to start in July 2009.  The current registration will expire in August 2011.
Following a major revision of the regulatory system for crop protection products, the Ministry is working through nearly 27,000 dossiers for re-registration.  CropLife International, the global federation representing the plant science industry, has been working with Thai regulatory officials to strengthen the country’s regulation of herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and other crop protection products used on its 18 million hectares of crops.
 

Farming Facts about Thailand

1st - Thailand's position as a rice exporter 
10 million ha of rice grown
11% of Thailand's GDP comes from farming
43% of Thai workforce engaged in agriculture

Thai farmers grow crops including 10 million hectares (ha) of rice, nearly 2 million ha of rubber, and around one million ha each of cassava, sugarcane and maize.

China: No-till cropping

Last year, the Paraquat Information Center published the story of successful use of paraquat in no-till systems in Sichuan (read here). This article is now supported by Fang Shu-An’s own described below.
No-Tillage Technique and Practice in Paddy Rice Wheat and Paddy Rice Oil Seed Rape Field in Leshan Area, Sichuan, China By Fang Shu-An - Agriculture Bureau, Dongpo District, Meishan City, Sichuan Province, 612160 China.
Paddy rice, wheat and oil-seed rape are the most important crops in Leshan area, Sichuan Province, southwest of China, and paddy rice rotated with either wheat or oil-seed rape is the most common practice in this area. Study on the no-tillage technique under this cultivation mode was started in 1983. A set of practical no-tillage techniques for the Leshan area was discovered after plot tests and large field demonstrations had been carried out for many years. The total cumulated cultivated area using this practice reaches 335 thousand hectares and now this cultivation practice accounts for more than 85% in the area. The key technique of no-tillage cultivation is weed control, and Gramoxone‘s* features of fast action and rainfastness make it the most suitable herbicide both for successful weeding and timely sowing for earlier harvests.

Vietnam: Reducing soil erosion

Paraquat and no-till methods are minimizing soil erosion and increasing productivity for corn farmers in Northern Vietnam. Corn (maize) is an important crop for the Vietnamese - especially for those living in the hilly northwest region.  180,000 hectares (ha) of corn are grown on hillside fields during the rainy season.
Traditional but time-consuming “slash and burn” farming practices limit crops to one per year and often result in low yields and high soil erosion.
Paraquat applied pre-planting and inter-row reduced soil erosion by 34% and shortened growing time by more than 20 days per season*. This represents a savings of VND **750,000 per ha in manpower costs compared to manual hand-weeding methods.
Erosion is influenced by several factors including gradient, rainfall, surface residue, soil texture, and tillage method. Using traditional tillage methods, the exposed soil surface becomes compacted, increasing rainfall run-off and reducing corn rooting depth.  No-till systems were developed to prevent soil erosion, improve soil fertility, and reduce labor and fuel costs.

India: No-till rice

Field demonstrations in West Bengal prove that using paraquat and no-till plus thrown seedling technology in paddy rice is enhancing productivity. Paraquat and no-till are providing a solution that minimizes the cost and number of days required for rice cultivation.
“Minimizing costs includes the cost of plowing, which is about Rs. 2250 to 3000,” commented Mr. Tapas Kundu, District Plant Protection Officer, North 24 Parganas, for the Goverment of West Bengal’s Department of Agriculture.
He goes on to explain, “Normally, establishing rice requires 12 to 14 days for land preparation, including one or two days of plowing and eight to 10 days of stoppage to allow the weeds to decompose before the farmer gives the field a final cultivation and levels the field for rice transplanting. By using paraquat, a farmer can transplant in just four days. So, he can save an average of 10 days using this method and can use this time to establish his next crop, like early potatoes, tomatoes and other vegetables, which fetch an attractive market price.”
At first farmers were doubtful, but seeing is believing…and now government officials are extremely positive.  Seven days after being thrown into the paddy, seedlings had established themselves and stood at 90-degree angles.

China: More vegetable crops

Paraquat enables faster crop production for farmers in Guandong, China. This case study is based on an article by Mr. Shen Shu Ping of South China Agriculture University, published in the Chinese Journal 'Pesticide Information'.
In the Guandong region there are one million hectares of high-quality vegetables and up to eight crops are grown each year on the same land.  Under such intensive cultivation, a rapid turnaround between crops is essential if farmers are to maximize production.
To achieve this, after harvest weeds and trash must be cleared quickly and the next crop sown or planted within a few days. It is not surprising, therefore, that paraquat is used on over 40% of the vegetable area in Guandong.
The vegetable farmers of Guandong use paraquat in several different ways. First, it is sprayed as a pre-plant treatment, often in tank mixture with a fertilizer or with butachlor (another herbicide) to provide residual weed control. Paraquat has also been widely adopted for inter-row weeding and after harvest it is used to desiccate stubbles, trash and any remaining weeds.
Paraquat's speed of action is key to its success. After spraying, weeds are killed within one or two days and during this period the land can be prepared for the next crop without delay.

Indonesia: Tidal rice

Paraquat allows rice planting in currently non-productive land and reduces the time between rice crop cycles in Indonesia.
The population of Indonesia is increasing at 2% per year and its government is desperately trying to achieve self-sufficiency in rice to feed this population. They hope to achieve this by bringing currently non-productive land like the tidal areas of Kalimantan into cropping and by increasing the number of rice crops grown each year.
There are currently 1 million hectares of tidal rice, mainly in Kalimantan, but the potential is close to 10 million hectares. Approximately 60% of this area is influenced by tides. Inundation is caused when the incoming tide forms a barrier to rivers flowing into the sea, which then flood areas with fresh, but somewhat brackish water. Much of the area has an underlying layer of iron pyrites, and while rice can be grown on these soils there is a danger of soil erosion.
The manual preparation of rice paddy fields is not only very arduous, but it also a major cause of soil erosion. In contrast, the development of no-till systems has minimized this erosion.
Paraquat is a key component of the developing tidal rice growing system because it is the only herbicide that can provide fast weed control, even when the land is flooded twice a day.

Case Studies

Articles in this section are about specific examples of how paraquat is being used and new uses explored in sustainable cropping systems.
The case studies show how farmers, their families and their land can benefit by farming with paraquat; and how this enables them to grow better crops.

Use

Paraquat is one of the most widely used herbicides in the world, marketed globally under the brand name Gramoxone by Syngenta. A list of other brand names under which paraquat is sold can be found here.
Paraquat is used in over 100 countries either to prepare the land for planting or for controlling weeds in more than 100 crops, including major food crops: corn, rice, soya, wheat, potatoes; major fruits: apples, oranges, bananas; beverages: coffee, tea, cocoa; and processed crops: cotton, oil palm, sugarcane, and rubber.
In this section you can find information about crops for which paraquat is an essential production tool and a selection of case studies illustrating the benefits from using paraquat in some very different cropping systems.
The crop reviews describe the crop, where it is grown and what it is used for; crop production methods and weed, insect pest and disease problems; and the key benefits from using paraquat. They are summarised here and more extensive articles can be found in the Knowledge Bank.
The case studies demonstrate why paraquat is an essential tool for use in sustainable agriculture, and one which many farmers around the world rely upon for their livelihoods and to support their families.

Paraquat re-registered in the Philippines

Paraquat was granted a full re-registration in the Philippines on 22 October 2008 for a further three years.  This followed a full and detailed scientific review by the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority of the Philippines.  This is excellent news for the country’s 90 million inhabitants for whom agriculture is a very significant part of their economy. 
For 12 million farmers, it means they can continue to use paraquat as an essential tool in their efforts to grow food, make an important contribution to the country’s export earnings from crops like coconuts, bananas and pineapples, and protect the soil from erosion.
Paraquat can be used on a vast range of crops grown in the Philippines from staples like rice, to indigenous vegetables, to plantation crops. It means more work can be done more quickly and more productively, without damaging crops, and while caring for the soil.
Paraquat can be used on a vast range of crops grown in the Philippines from staples like rice, to indigenous vegetables, to plantation crops. It means more work can be done more quickly and more productively, without damaging crops, and while caring for the soil. 
Farming is one of the Philippines’ most important industries. More than one worker in three works on a farm.