With technology in agriculture continuing to evolve, biologicals have emerged among the most promising products to hit the market. With a relatively affordable price point and improving performance, biological products are becoming a frequent part of a grower’s nutrient and crop protection portfolio.

Data show the future market for these products is expected to experience even further growth, driven by increasing demand for sustainable farming practices and the need for alternatives to synthetic chemicals. The global market is projected to reach $43.53 billion by 2035, with a compound annual growth rate of 10%, according to dimension market research.

With this trend showing no signs of slowing down, No-Till Farmer has created an annual survey to find out how no-tillers and strip-tillers are using biofertilizers, biopesticides and biofertilizers on their operations. We’re sharing the results with you as we debut our first annual Ag Biologicals Benchmark Survey.

No less than 70% of participants said they used a biological product on their farm, while 30% said they did not. In the coming years, we’ll be able to compare new data to the previous years to monitor and relay important trends.

Interestingly, in No-Till Farmer’s annual year-end “Operational Benchmark Survey” we’ve been sending out for more than a decade, some 50% of no-tillers and strip-tillers said they recently used products touted to improve soil biological activity. That is a double-digit increase over data from several years ago.

Versatile Tools

We first asked participants to describe the scope of their operations and what tillage system they used.

The average farm responding to the Ag Biologicals Survey had 1,159 acres of row crops, 442 livestock grazing acres and 687 cover crop acres. Most were no-tilling corn and soybeans but a sizeable number strip-tilled corn as well. Smaller numbers indicated ridge-till, vertical tillage or conventional tillage.

A majority of the survey participants were from the Great Lakes States, Corn Belt of Northern Plains.

We then started asking farmers how biologicals were used on farmers in the most recent complete cropping season. Most respondents (70%) have been using biologicals for 5 years or less and 30% have for 6 years or more. More than half (52%) say the “sustainability” of biological products is very important to them, and 37% said that is “somewhat important.”

Many biological products offer flexibility in how they’re applied, including tankmixing them with other inputs. Most farmers tankmixed them with fertilizer (60%), micronutrients (52%) or herbicides (43%), while smaller number did so with fungicides and pesticides.

Growers definitely want to choose the right products and maximize their ROI, so they turn to a variety of sources to gather information. At this time there’s not very much independent research, so isn’t not shocking that most growers (54%) turn to manufacturers, followed by Internet research (49%), agronomists, conferences and field days, and other farmers.

When asked who the most important information source for making decisions on what products to buy, 31% said they turn to agronomists or crop consultants the most, followed by the Internet, other farmers and events/field days.

Biostimulants a Popular Solution

Of the farmers who used biologicals in the past year, 88% said they used biostimulants, which are naturally derived products that stimulate natural processes in plants or soil. The average number of acres where biostimulants were applied was 784, although farm sizes and application scale varied widely.

A majority applied biostimulants to boost processes below the soil, including soil biological activity (79%), increasing availability or fixation of nutrients (63%) or to boost root development (66%) — although increasing yields (78%) was also a major goal. Improving stress resistance (59%) was another frequent goal.

Growers used a variety of methods to apply them, including in-furrow (59%), broadcast liquid (50%) and seed treatment (45%).

When asked whether the product provided the results that were promised or expected, 56% said "yes”, 15% said “no” and 29% said they didn’t know. Some 54% of farmers said they conducted on-farm trials of products before using them.

Room for Growth with Biopesticides

Only a small number of participants in the survey said they used biopesticides, which are certain types of pesticides derived from such natural materials as animals, plants, bacteria and certain minerals.

Most of them applied the product in furrow or as a seed treatment, over an average of 711 acres.

The uses of biopesticides among farmers was very diverse: most used them to control insect pests (80%), as expected, but preventing or minimizing plant disease (53%), improving stress resistance (53%) or crop quality (40%), or reducing use of synthetic chemicals (40%) were also major reasons. Weed control was not a widely reported goal.

Some 57% said they performed on-farm trials before using biopesticides, and on a positive note, 73% of farmers said the product delivered what they were promised or what they expected.

Gearing Up for Biofertilizers

Although not as popular as biostimulants, a fair amount of growers responding to the survey (65%) used biofertilizers in the past year over an average of 756 acres.

Increasing yields was the top goal with these products (78%), followed by improving soil fertility (71%), soil biological activity (75%), nutrient availability or fixation (60%), root development (65%) and stress resistance (53%) were all prominent.

In furrow and broadcast liquid applications were most popular.

Only 42% of farmers conducted on-farm trials of the products before using them, but overall, 62% of respondents said the products delivered what was promised or expected. But a quarter of them said they “don’t know” if the results had met their goals.

Other Points to Ponder

Here are some additional anecdotes from the survey data:

• CHALLENGES WITH USE: When farmers were asked what their biggest challenges with adopting or using ag biologicals, most said it was cost (52%), profitability (51%), obtaining unbiased research results (49%) and getting consistent results.
                    About 30% of farmers said “understanding how they work” was an obstacle, and “unkowledgeable” support people” came in at 21%. Very few farmers said the products available didn’t address their specific on-farm challenges, and incompatibility of products with the farmer’s current inputs of farming systems wasn’t a major concern either.
   
• HIGH INTEREST: Of the respondents who hadn’t used biologicals in the past year, 68% said they would be interested in learning more about them.
   
• VARIED MARKET SHARE: The number of vendors tossing their hat into the ring by offering biological products is truly daunting. Among survey participants, Corteva, Pivot Bio, BW Fusion, Holganix and Nutrien were most often mentioned. But there were dozens more companies identified by farmers. A handful of participants said they were making their own biologicals, and one farmer was using products made directly by their agronomist.