Brazil’s agriculture ministry declared a state of emergency in the country’s top soy-producing state of Mato Grosse and the secondary producing state of Bahia because of infestations of the Helicoverpa caterpillar. The Helicoverpa can destroy soy, corn and cotton crops and has been troublesome in Asia, Australia and Africa since the 1800’s. In China and India 50% of pesticide applications are to control the pest, however the insect had not appeared in South America until last year. Brazil recently approved the importation of more powerful pesticides to deal with the infestations. Monsanto states it has been working on combating the pest and will have a multiple-mode-of-application product on the market by the end of the decade. Last summer the Helicoverpa cost Brazil an estimated $4.7 billion and outbreaks have been reported in 21 Brazilian states so far this year. So far the infestations have raised the cost of production of grains in Brazil since farmers must reapply layers of insecticides and or destroy infected crops. If the problem continues and spreads, the infestations could eventually have an effect on global grain prices.
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