115 / 138
Future projection
The value of this market segment is expected to grow in the future. The loss
of and possible future restrictions on different low price/low value solutions
(contact and soil herbicides) will increase the average farmer level cost
for weed control programs, boosting the total market value. To maintain
general interest for herbicides at farmer level, it is estimated that the cost
per hectare per treatment cannot exceed €50-70/ha, otherwise alternative
weeding methods may become very interesting for farmers. Crop and weed
recognition for mechanical weed control, electrical or heat treatments have
been in development for several years already. Different types of robots
are available on the market for automated weed control. However, all
these AgTech alternatives to herbicide solutions are faced with a number
of restrictions: EU legislation, high cost per hectare (machinery cost,
labour time), specific machinery type required per crop, as well as several
constraints in terms of weather conditions before and after “treatment” that
are necessary for satisfactory performance.
Lentagran
®
45 WP
Lentagran
®
45WP sales are mainly focused on high value crops like
vegetables, which represented 86% of total Lentagran 45WP sales in 2021.
Tobacco, dry peas, clover and alfalfa contribute to the rest of the Lentagran
45WP sales in Europe. Belchim’s vegetable crop expertise, supply chain
improvements and market understanding contributed to an increase of 39%
in turnover and 68% in total net profit over the past five years.
113