BASF has opened an expanded Littlehampton production site to meet the growing global demand for biological solutions for agriculture and horticulture.

The move means that BASF can increase its production volumes of beneficial nematodes and inoculants, moving ahead with its strategy to develop beyond conventional crop protection. Philipp Rosendorfer, Vice President R&D Functional Crop Care, said: “We are making significant investments in innovating and delivering the best in biological and chemical solutions.” The expansion will allow BASF to double production capacities for beneficial nematodes, which are microscopic organisms that can control a diverse range of insect and slug pests.

Graeme Gowling, Global Biologicals Marketing, Functional Crop Care, said: “The demand for our beneficial nematodes has increased significantly over the past five years. Our customers see an increasingly important role in using beneficial nematodes in Integrated Pest Management programmes as they are easy to apply, have a longer window of activity and can effectively control yield-robbing pests.” Additionally, the newly expanded site in Littlehampton will increase the supply of inoculants from BASF worldwide and especially to Europe and Africa. Inoculants are rhizobia bacteria that, in a symbiotic relationship with their host legume plants, produce root nodules to conduct nitrogen fixation. BASF produces biological inoculants as an ingredient for seed treatments.