Bayer signed a development and distribution agreement with French pheromones expert company M2i Group for the exclusive distribution of pheromone gels for the Asia-Pacific as well as the Latin America region and the United States building on its successful collaboration and related product launches in Europe and Africa.
Through an agreement signed in 2023 with M2i Group, Bayer has become the exclusive distributor of selected M2i products in Europe and some African countries targeting lepidoptera and some sucking pests in crops that include stone and pome fruits, tomatoes, and grapes. Now, the two companies expand their scope to serve farmers beyond Europe and Africa and strengthen their strategic partnership to deliver biological crop protection solutions on a global scale.
“Effective products with low or no residue are an important part of Bayer’s biological portfolio. Through these strategic partnerships, we are able to broaden the crop protection toolbox and farmers have more solutions available that they can apply in their farm operations”, said Ralf Glaubitz, Head of Crop Protection Product Team Fungicides, Biologics and Fruits & Vegetables at Bayer’s Crop Science division. “We are excited to strengthen our collaboration and further enhance Bayer’s existing biological portfolio.”
Strategic partnerships in the biologicals space are key for Bayer and a crucial part of the company’s open innovation approach: combining leading Research & Development capabilities with knowledge and ingenuity from experts outside the company.
“In our Press technology, Pheromones are formulated in a thick and long-lasting gel, dispensed from a pressurized device that can easily deliver the gel directly to the plant. Besides the effective and green formulation of pheromones, it offers more advantages: The bottle is reusable, and the direct dispensation keeps growers from having to use plastic in an applicator or hanger. This unique innovation is a way to save time and to keep plastic use to a minimum and to reduce waste. We are excited to see such an innovation distributed on a worldwide scale”, says Phillippe Guerret, CEO of M2i.
Based on the first agreement in 2023, products of the VYNYTY Press series have been launched across Europe and in some African countries during the last 3 years offering sustainable solutions to farmers. For example, recently, the VYNYTY Tuta Press product has been successfully introduced to tomatoes growers from Morocco to Turkey as well as in Spain, Italy and Netherlands. In Chile the Press technology against Lobesia has been tested during the last 2 years in local conditions and is now launched on wine grapes and table grapes.
M2i Group is the leader in pheromone production in Europe and has expertise in developing, formulating, and manufacturing complex molecules. With kicking-off the partnership in 2023, Bayer has started to integrate M2i’s pheromone products, including M2i’s innovative press application technology, into a complementary system of digitally enabled solutions that include pest monitoring tools to advise growers on pest pressures and application timelines, and other synthetic and biological products tailored to grower needs.
